Youkai Forest
by D-Chan3
Summary: Nominated for Best Characterization!....While traveling with Sesshomaru, something happens to Rin that drastically changes her life! How will Sesshomaru handle it? Will he be able to save her first? Read and find out! Usual disclaimer applies! RSess,
1. Default Chapter

Youkai Forest 

Prologue

The surrounding forest was dark and eerily silent. No birdsong rang out, no wind blew through the trees. It was cold here and the forest gave off a feeling of death and impending doom. They had been walking since dawn and now it was midday and even her companions seemed to be unnerved by their surroundings. Rin glanced towards her white hared guardian and sighed quietly, she was starting to get hungry, "_Rin wonders when we're going stop walking so Rin can find something to eat?" _ Her musings were broken by a loud growling sound from her stomach. Up ahead the white hared demon known as Sesshomaru paused in midstep. Glancing over his shoulder, he took in Rin's sheepish expression and the fact that her hand was currently covering her stomach. Sighing quietly, Sesshomaru took in their surroundings before deeming it fit as a resting spot. "Rin."

"Hai, Sesshomaru-sama?"

"You may forage for something to eat, but do not go far. The magic of place is very old and dangerous, and even this Sesshomaru does not want to linger here longer than necessary." Turning around, he sniffed the air and nodded before continuing, "There is a stream nearby. I suggest that you get something to drink as well before we leave."

"Hai Sesshomaru-sama, Rin will be careful. Rin will be right back with her food," She replied, whirling around, Rin dashed off into the darkness; trusting her Sesshomaru-sama to protect her.

"Jaken!" Sesshomaru called for his servant.

"Yes Lord Sesshomaru?" the toad demon replied as he came running as fast as his short legs would allow.

"Follow Rin and make sure she does not get hurt." Sesshomaru growled his command.

"Yes Master," Jaken replied, prostrating himself on the ground in front of Sesshomaru.

"Oh, and Jaken?" Sesshomaru spoke coldly.

Jaken raised his bulbous eyes from gazing at the ground to stare at his masters blank faced expression, "Hai Master, how can this lowly Jaken be of service to you?"

Sesshomaru smiled menacingly and replied,"If Rin comes back hurt, kidnapped, attacked or lost on purpose then, I will not revive you this time after I shred you into a million pieces."

Jaken froze at the threat laced through his masters tone of voice and gulped. He had lost Rin too many times and this time he was determined to keep his life, even if it meant watching that human pup that his master cared for. "Y-yes, Sesshomaru-sama. This lowly Jaken will not fail you again. I will watch her even if it means my life if she gets hurt."

"Good," Sesshomaru replied, before walking over to sit down on a boulder to await his charges return. Glancing over his shoulder, he spotted the toad demon still kneeling on the ground, "Jaken," he lifted his arm, flexed his claws and continued, "Why are you still here?"

"Wak!" Jaken squawked, leaping to his stubby legs, he ran out of the clearing to catch up to Rin.

Shivering in the chill air, Rin ignored Jaken as she searched the bushes for something edible. Spotting something from the corner of her eye, Rin turned around and hurried over towards what looked to be a patch of strangely colored berries. Crouching down, Rin sniffed them as her Sesshomaru-sama had taught her to do to see if they were safe to eat. Detecting no hint of poison, Ring quickly set about picking her lunch.

Jaken watched as the the human pup sniffed the berries and yelled, "What do you think you're doing?! Your pitiful human nose can't detect poison!"

"Sesshomaru-sama taught Rin to look for safe food!" Rin replied before sticking out her tongue at the toad demon.

"Why you insolent pup!" Jaken squawked in outrage. Lifting his staff of heads, he shook it threateningly and proceeded to chase Rin around the forest.

Rin giggled at Jaken's antics. She knew that he was not allowed to hurt her or her guardian would kill him. Spinning around, Rin taunted the toad demon, "Sesshomaru-sama also gave Rin some of his blood to help Rin's nose get better." Unfortunately, she was not looking where she was going before something suddenly grabbed her around the waist, yanking her off the ground and into the air. Rin gasped, she didn't even have time to scream before she was enveloped in darkness. The last thing that Rin saw was Jaken being impaled by a strange looking root.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

As Sesshomaru sat upon the boulder, eyes searching for danger; his face an expressionless mask, he thought about the past year when he had first met Rin to when Naraku had kidnapped her. _"That bastard hanyou is still out there and this Sesshomaru will make sure he dies! I will have my revenge on him for daring to take what's mine!"_ Lifting his hand, he absently ran his fingers through the silky hairs of his tail on his shoulder. "_But, every time that hanyou Naraku manages to elude me. He has too many tricks up his sleeve and he is too cowardly to face me in person...maybe this Sesshomaru should join Inu-Yasha's group and help them since they seem to meet up with that bastard quite often."_ He frowned, "_No...This Sesshomaru will not lower himself as of yet to join with my lowly brother." _

Sighing, Sesshomaru turned his gaze skyward, closed his eyes and listened to Rins laughter as it rang through the forest. Suddenly, the laughter ceased abruptly; the wind that had been blowing away from him, shifted. Taking a deep breath, Sesshomaru detected the overpowering scent of fear and a metallic smell that could only be blood. "Rin!" he whispered, surging to his feet. The Western Lord didn't hesitate a second, using his great speed, he ran towards the scent. Bursting through the underbrush, he glanced around the clearing. Immediately, he spotted Jaken's corpse lying in a pool of blood; apparently Jaken had been speared through the chest by a very large object. His staff was still in his hand and a look of shock was frozen on his face. "This Sesshomaru needs to know what has happened and what it was that has taken my Rin. I have no choice but to do this even though he doesn't deserve it," he said, reaching a hand towards Tensiaga's hilt. In one swift motion, he drew the sword and slashed it through the toads body, reviving him. "Jaken, what happened here that you have managed to not only lose Rin, but get killed in the process?" Sesshomaru growled, his icy tone of voice sending chills down the toads spine.

"Aaaaa!" Jaken squawked. "L-lord Sesshomaru! I-I-we were looking for food like you had ordered and then Rin started her usual teasing and..."

"Jaken!" Sesshomaru growled, quietly.

The toad demon froze before blurting out, "I-it was horrible!" Jaken quaked under his masters chilling glare. "I-I tried to save her, but the creature was too fast. It came out of nowhere and attacked us. I used the staff of heads to fend it off, but it was resistant to fire and grabbed Rin before it killed me." Jaken knew he was dead and that he was living on borrowed time. "I-I've never seen the like of it b-before, my Lord."

Sesshomaru frowned, his thoughts hidden behind an expressionless face. "I will let you live for now, toad. This Sesshomaru has more important matters to deal with at the moment." He turned away, lifted his nose into the air and sniffed. He detected a faint scent of something foreign and demonic. "Grrrrrrr," he growled loudly, unable to suppress his reaction to the scent as his instincts warred with an unknown emotion. This scent was something he had never smelled before and it intermingled with Rin's scent. Sesshomaru knew that he needed to get to Rin and quickly. Sesshomaru also knew that he was the one at fault for letting her go off on her own. He had ignored the warnings of his father to stay out of this forest, but he had brushed them off as mere fairytails meant to frighten a pup into behaving. So he had made the decision to cut through the forest to shorten the distance he had to travel. Now, he wasn't so sure that they were fairytails. Unconsciously, his youkai began to rise and he whispered menacingly, "No one takes what is mine...and Rin **is** mine!"

Jaken shuddered in fear and began backing away from his master. He noticed his masters eyes turning red and gulped. Quickly, he backed away as he heard his master cracking his knuckles in preparation of the on coming fight. Jaken didn't want to be in his masters way or Lord Sesshomaru might just take a swipe at him with his poison claws. "_I have_ _seen Lord Sesshomaru react this way only once. And, that was when Naraku kidnapped Rin. He's way beyond angry now...he's furious!"_

Drawing Tokijin from its sheath, Sesshomaru took off into the forest, hot on the trail of Rin's scent. "Rin's scent has changed, she's unconscious," he growled, picking up the pace to a dead run. He had been running for over two hours when suddenly, the trail ended at the base of a monstrous white tree. Sniffing the air, Sesshomaru snarled as his anger rose to unprecedented heights. He glanced around and saw nothing that would indicate where she had gone. Circling the clearing he continuously scented the air for her, but could not detect the faintest whiff of his Rin's scent! The trail stopped right here, but she was no where in sight. Deciding that he should try listening for anything unusual that might give him a hint as to what direction she was in, Sesshomaru paused, quieted his breathing and listened.

babump

_"What was that?"_ he thought, cocking his head to the right while trying to pickup the sound again.

babump...babump

There it was again. "It sounds like a...heart beating?" Now thoroughly confused, the youkai lord furrowed his brow in puzzlement. "Where is it coming from? I'm the only thing here, so what is causing it?" Slowly, Sesshomaru's eyes were drawn towards the tree. He stared hard at it before moving closer. As he neared the tree, the sound seemed to get louder.

babum**p**

He took a step closer.

babu**mp**

And another step.

**babump**

Standing at the base of the tree, the lord of the Western Lands frowned, "This Sesshomaru has never seen a tree like this before. Yet, it seems to be alive if my ears are not deceiving me...the heart beat seems to be coming from..." he lifted his eyes towards the treetops while keeping his gaze on the trunk. "There!" Quickly, he gathered himself and jumped to the nearest branch. Landing lightly, he noticed a strange shadowy shape embedded inside the tree. "The shape seems oddly familiar. It looks like a small child..."

Eyes widening, Sesshomaru whispered her name in recognition, "Rin!"

Taking a step closer he reached out his hand and placed it upon the bark of the tree; directly over her form. It felt warm to the touch and he could feel the beating of her heart. Suddenly, he heard Rins voice in his mind, but it echoed and intertwined with thousands of other voices, _"Sesshomaru-sama...Rin is in a dark place, it's warm and quiet here. Rin feels funny...something is wrong. Rin is getting very tired. Rin is scared. Sesshomaru-sama...please come save Rin."_

With a loud cry, Sesshomaru yanked his hand back and lifted Tokijin in preparation to free her. Something in his chest wrenched and twisted; he ignored it, but paused as a thought ran through his mind, "No. I cannot get her out with the sword. I might accidentally hurt her." He sheathed the sword and then raised his arm, cracking his knuckles in preparation while muttering, "I should use my acid attack to melt her out of the tree."

Swiftly, he slashed his claws across the bark, melting it. The tree shuddered and shook wildly while an ear piercing screeching noise echoed throughout the forest. It was difficult to maintain his balance as the strange tree bucked and swayed; its limbs thrashed wildly in pain. Eyes never once leaving the motions of the wildly swinging limbs, Sesshomaru reached inside the dark cavity and retrieved his ward. Shielding her with his tail, he dodged several spear-like limbs intent on impaling him. One managed to draw blood from his shoulder; from that wound and intense pain erupted. It felt like his whole shoulder was being melted away. The only thing that made it worse was that it wasn't healing at all and he could feel a strange poison spreading throughout his body. "Arrrrrg!" he cried out, before he could control his reaction. Coming to a swift decision he growled, "I cannot risk her life in a battle against this creature," before jumping down and dashing away towards the clearing where he had left Jaken.

Suddenly, a rustling noise came from behind him. Sesshomaru glanced over his shoulder, he could see multiple root like limbs, each tipped with a deadly point pursuing him through the forest. "Fuck!" he cursed, his eyes widened in surprise before turning his attention back to where he was going. Sesshomaru ran faster, while dodging each strike that tried to end his life.

* * *

Jaken sat in the grass deep in thought. He had been waiting for Lord Sesshomaru for a while and now the sun was beginning to set. The strange noise from before had unnerved him to the point that he was extremely jumpy and skittish. The slightest rustle of a leaf set him off. Suddenly, he heard several rustling noises all around him, rising to his feet, he positioned the staff of heads in front of him in a defensive stance and waited. "W-who's there? Show yourself or this lowly Jaken will be forced to use his staff!" he squawked, nervously.

Suddenly, there came another rustling noise and the faint sound of running footsteps that grew louder with each minute that passed. Between one second and the next, a white blur entered the clearing, but it did not pause in its flight. One moment, Jaken had been standing and the next, he found himself scooped up by a clawed hand. Glancing upwards, Jaken recognized the striped wrist of his master." L-lord Sesshomaru...forgive this lowly Jaken for asking, but why are you running?"

"Hn..." Sesshomaru grunted as he deftly dodged another of those deadly spiked limbs that seemed to come from nowhere and everywhere.

Jaken squeaked in surprise as another limb barely missed impaling him again, "Never mind! This Jaken understands now! Please keep running and please don't drop meeeeeee!"

Sesshomaru grunted as he dodged yet another limb, he could see the end of the forest up ahead. He could feel his body slowing down as the poison made its way through his body. His vision began to narrow, and breathing became difficult. For one brief moment, he caught the scent of his brother and his companions, then it vanished as his ability to detect scents disappeared.

Sesshomaru could feel the darkness of unconsciousness creeping in from the effects of the poison and loss of blood. One thought rang through his mind as he crossed out of the Youkai Forest and into a clearing of the normal forest, "I must protect Rin." He stumbled a few times, but continued on instinct, to run. Up ahead he could make out a flash of red and headed towards it with no thought as to any possible danger he would encounter.

* * *

I'd like to thank the people who've reviewed. You know who you are. So thanks for the encouragement! 


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

They had been traveling for over a week, skirting this strange looking forest and so far there was no sign of Shikon shards. Kagome sighed, her feet hurt and her back ached from carrying around her yellow pack. "Inu-Yasha? Can we please stop and make camp? We're all hungry and I'm sure you would enjoy some Ramen."

"But...," Inu-Yasha started to say when he was suddenly interrupted.

Miroku stepped forward, "Yes. I would really like something to eat. Besides we have been traveling since before dawn.

"Yes. I agree with Kagome," Sango interjected.

Sighing, Inu-Yasha knew when he was outnumbered and nodded his head. "All right! We'll camp here for the night, but don't go near that forest with black trees over there!" he said, pointed towards the left.

Shippo leaned forward on Kagome's shoulder and asked, "Why? What's wrong with it?"

"Well, it gives me the creeps and for some reason, my instincts are telling me that it's too dangerous to go in there," the hanyou replied, folding his arms across his chest in an athoritive manor. "Besides..." he started to say when suddenly the wind shifted, bringing with it the scent of blood and his brothers scent. Turning towards the Youkai Forest, he growled,"Sesshomaru!" Inu-Yasha unsheathed Tetsaiga in one smooth motion and waited. He didn't have long to wait before his brother burst into the clearing and to his great surprise, the great lord of the Western lands collapsed, rolled for several meters and landed on his back, all the while shielding something under his tail. Jaken, who had been in his grasp, was flung forward, "Aaaaaaaaa!" and smacked against a tree trunk, knocking him unconscious. From behind Sesshomaru, wildly gyrating movement drew the groups attention. There, at the edge of the Youkai Forest several white roots writhed and squirmed, each was tipped with what looked like a dripping acidic poison. For some odd reason though, the strange roots didn't want to come out into the light, so they stayed in the darkness of the Youkai Forest.

"What the Fuck is that!" Inu-Yasha yelled, pointing towards the Youkai Forest. Kagome and the rest of his companions glanced towards where he was pointing and gasped in surprise.

Miroku watched those strange roots with a mild curiosity mixed with aversion and replied, "I have no idea what those are, but they may be the cause of your brother's current state."

Turning their attention back towards the Western Lord, Kagome asked, "Inu-Yasha...what's wrong with him?"

"I don't know, but his scent is full of poison and blood, but I can't see anything from here." Cautiously, the hanyou moved towards his brother until he could see what was wrong. In Inu-Yasha's experience with his brother, nothing was strong enough to bring down the Lord of the Western Lands and yet, his brother was down and out cold. Stepping nearer, he glanced around the clearing and back towards the Youkai Forest and then back at his brother. That's when he noticed it; Sesshomaru's left shoulder looked to be eaten clear through. His kimono was saturated in blood. Glancing towards his companions, Inu-Yasha licked his lips nervously and replied, "I-I think he was attacked by that thing that came from the Youkai Forest. From the stories that I've heard from my mother, no demon or human ever goes in there and comes out alive."

Sango stepped forward, "Then he's very lucky, Inu-Yasha. If what you're telling us is true, then he should be dead."

"Yeah." Kagome replied, before coming to a decision, "We've got to help him. After all, he is your brother and he's the only family you have left, Inu-Yasha."

"What!" the hanyou started to protest, but was interrupted by a moaning sound that seemed to come from his brothers tail.

"Sessomaru-sama?" the voice was whisper soft. Suddenly, the tail on Sesshomaru's chest shifted to reveal a small hand.

Kagome gasped in surprise before moving closer towards the lord of the Western lands. "Hello. Are you all right?"

"ooohhh," the moan came again before the voice behind it spoke, "Rin is fine, but Rin feels funny." A small head, still covered by Sesshomaru's tail moved upwards and a hand reached towards Sesshomaru's face, patting it gently, the girl named Rin whispered, "Sesshomaru-sama is hurt?" When she received no answer from her lord, Rin cried with heart wrenching sobs, "Sesshomaru-sama must not leave Rin all alone!. Please wake up!" She received only a groan from her lord before all went silent; only his erratic breathing was heard.

Inu-Yahsa's heart melted at the sight, he recognized the girl's scent and her name from when he had rescued her from Naraku. He sighed replied, "Fine. But, hurry before he wakes up."

"Rin?" Kagome called to the little girl to get her attention. When the crying died down to quiet hiccups, Kagome continued, "You need to let us tend to Sesshomaru's wounds. If we're to do that, then you need to come out from under his tail."

Rin wiggled for a few moments, this only caused Sesshomaru to growl and tighten his hold on his charge while still in his unconscious state. "Rin can't. Sesshomaru-sama won't let Rin go," the little girl replied with a giggle.

Inu-Yasha growled in annoyance while deciding to explain a few things to his human companions before they started to make a big stink about this. "Hey! You'll never get him to let her go while he's out cold!"

"Why is that, Inu-Yasha?" Miroku questioned, frowning.

"Yeah! Why won't Sesshomaru let Rin go?" Shippo asked as he scampered off of Kagome's shoulder to try and peer under Sesshomaru's tail. Before he got within two feet of her, Sesshomaru let loose a loud growl, baring his teeth in a threatening manner. Shippo let loose a loud squeal, before dashing back to hide behind Kagome's leg.

Inu-Yasha laughed at the kits reaction towards his brother. "Well, it appears that my brother's instincts are still working even when he's out cold!"

"What do you mean Inu-Yasha?" Sango asked while taking a few steps closer to the Youkai lord. She stared at the way his clawed hand clutched the lump under his tail close to his chest. A thought began to run through her mind, but before she could voice her question, Inu-Yasha interrupted, "Don't you know anything about Dog Demons and their pups, Sango?"

"Well, I did learn about the other kinds of Dog Demons in general, but we were never taught anything about the White Dogs except that they were the rulers of all the other Dog Demons. Why?" Sango asked, puzzled.

"Ah, then you should know that The White Dogs are very protective of any pup in their care. This includes the males as well as the females," piped a voice from Inu-Yasha's shoulder.

"Miyoga!" Inu-Yasha growled in annoyance. The demon flea always picked the worst times to show up. But the minute that danger rolled around, he disappeared like smoke on the wind.

Kagome frowned at the new information and leaned forward, "Why is that, Miyoga?" she asked.

"It's because the White Dogs have a lower birth rate than the other dog demon tribes. In this way, with both the male and females protecting the pups, insures a greater survival rate in the pups that are born to the White Dogs," Miyoga replied, while crossing his six arms in contemplation before he continued, "This also applies in rare cases when a male White Dog adopts a pup even when he does not have a mate. Or is protecting a future mate that is too young to bear pups. You could say that it's instinctive to do so."

"Then how are we supposed to get close enough to him to take care of his wounds?" Kagome inquired with a slight huff.

"You will each have to approach him. If Sesshomaru growls at you, then you must back away quickly or he'll kill you," Miyoga replied in a serious manor. "That means you too, Master Inu-Yasha."

"Hell, No!" Inu-Yasha roared. Turning his back towards his brother, Inu-Yasha continued to rant, "I aint gonna go near him! Not after he tried to kill me several dozen times!"

"Master Inu-Yasha. No matter how many times your brother has tried to kill you, you are still of the White Dog clan and you may be the only one who can go near your brother! If you do not, then the pup," he pointed towards Rin, "might suffer if your brother dies!"

"Keh!" Inu-Yasha grumbled in defeat before turning around again to watch as Sango took a few steps closer to his brother. She didn't get very far before Sesshomaru growled at her. Miroku was next to try and he only managed one step towards his brother before Sesshomaru's responded with a viscous growl, the flexing of his claws on his good hand and the baring of teeth.

"Keh!" Inu-Yasha smirked and taunted the monk, "I could have told you that you wouldn't get another step closer to her before Sesshomaru woulda taken off your head...what with you being a lecher and all!"

"Inu-Yasha! That wasn't nice!" Kagome scolded. Inwardly however, Kagome admitted to having the same feeling that Sesshomaru could sense Miroku's perverted nature towards anything female.

"Well, it's true!" Inu-Yasha defended himself. "Since the pup is female, Sesshomaru is being more protective of her. Somehow he can sense that Miroku is a lecher and won't let him come any closer than he already is." Inu-Yasha turned and walked towards his brother, "I guess it's my turn. But, I know I won't be allowed to get too close to her...even if I'm family." The group watched as Inu-Yasha managed to get within two feet of his brother before Sesshomaru let loose a series of growls and barks. Inu-Yasha paused, his ears cocked forward as he listened, before he replied in kind, but with a different series of yips, growls and barks. Turning, towards his gaping companions, Inu-Yasha replied, "I told you he wouldn't let me get too close."

"I guess you're right, "Kagome sighed in defeat before turning towards the lord of the Western lands. "What did he say, Inu-Yasha?"

"Basically, he said if I came any closer to what was his, even if I am family, then I'd loose my head," the hanyou replied with a smirk. "I told him that since he's injured, we're here to help. He'll relax enough now to let Kagome get close to him...although, I'm not sure if he'll let you get within an inch of Rin."

"I don't get it." Sango muttered, confused.

Miroku stepped towards Sango while chewing on his lower lip before replying, "I have a feeling that it's Sesshomaru's subconscious mind that is in control at the moment. You know that Youkai instincts can be fierce to those who they don't trust when they're injured."

"Yeah, Miroku's right," Shippo chimed in from behind Kagome's leg.

"Oh well, I guess I'll try not to touch Rin while I'm fixing him up." Mustering her courage, Kagome walked slowly towards the western lord. When she was within a few feet of him, she concentrated on not thinking about the times he had tried to kill her and that he was injured and needed help. Before she knew it, she was kneeling at his side inspecting the wound.

The group let out a collective sigh and relaxed when Sesshomaru didn't attack Kagome. They watched with baited breath as Kagome treated Sesshomaru's shoulder with extreme care while managing to avoid going near Rin for fear of Sesshomaru's reaction. Several hours flew by unnoticed as Kagome treated the Western Lord. Once finished, Kagome backed away and turned around only to find that camp had already been set up. Giving a sigh of relief, she sat herself down while gratefully accepting a cup of Ramen from Sango, and began eating. After finishing her meal, Kagome grabbed a sandwich from her pack and took it over to Rin in the assumption that she was hungry.

"Rin?" Kagome called softly.

"Hmm?" the girl replied curiously.

"I brought you something to eat," Kagome said, extending the sandwich to within easy reach of the girl trapped under Sesshomaru's tail.

"Arigoto Kagome-sama!" Rin chirped, before her hand disappeared under Sesshomaru's tail with its prize.

"Are you going to come out of there anytime soon?" Kagome teased quietly, smiling.

"Rin has tried to move Sesshomaru-sama's tail, but it keeps hiding Rin from sight," the little girl replied with a hint of humor lacing her voice. "Watch," the little girl replied as a small hand tugged at the white fluffy tail, pulling it down until the top of her head became visible, before Sesshomaru voiced his displeasure with a small growl while at the same time pulling his tail back into its previous position, hiding Rin from sight. Rin giggled again as the fur tickled her nose.

Rin's laughter was so infectious, that Kagome let out a few chuckles of her own. "That is the cutest thing I've ever seen. He's so protective of you...I think he really likes you Rin." Suddenly, Kagome yawned and then chirped, "Well, I've got to go get some sleep. Inu-Yasha will be wanting to leave in the morning since we have a lot of walking to do before we find the next shard. You shouldn't worry too much, Rin. By midmorning, Sesshomaru's healing abilities should have done a good enough job of taking care of his shoulder; I also gave him enough herbs to take the poison out of his system."

"Thank you, Kagome-sama," the little girl replied happily.

"You're welcome, Rin. Well, good night, Rin," Kagome replied as she rose from her crouched position on Sesshomaru's right side. Turning, the Miko made her way back towards her friends while thinking about the past events from a few hours ago. Sighing, Kagome thought," I'd better get to bed. Knowing Inu-Yasha, he'll want to leave at first light." As she passed the tree where Jaken lay, Kagome glanced at the toad with a frown, the toad should have awoken by now. _"Maybe he hit his head harder than I thought,"_ she said while mumbling to herself, before continuing towards her sleeping bag. With a quiet word of goodnight to her friends, Kagome picked up a sleeping Shippo and crawled into her bag. Sleep came easily that night and true to her thoughts, Inu-Yasha woke them up at the crack of dawn the next day. The traveling party bid the sleeping Rin a quiet good-bye before disappearing from sight.

* * *

The first thing that Sesshomaru became aware of was the soothing sound of birds chirping. His thoughts were a bit scrambled due to the pounding headache in his temples. He frowned as he remembered the past few days. "I remember entering the forbidden Youkai Forest and rescuing Rin and then getting severely injured, before running from that thing that was so intent on ending my life." The next thing the Inuyoukai lord became aware of was the throbbing pain in his shoulder. Rotating it a bit to test out how much it had healed, he was a bit surprised to find that it had been bandaged and from the smell emanating from the bandages, it appeared to have a few herbs covering his wound to draw out the poison. Sniffing again, he recognized his brothers scent lingering in the air around him, _"Inu-Yasha. But, why am I still alive when my bastard half-breed brother was here? Did he help me?"_ Sniffing the air again, Sesshomaru recognized Inu-Yasha's woman's scent. _"No. It must have been his mate that insisted on healing me."_ He sighed before continuing his train of thought,_ "She must have a kind heart, since she adopted that fox kit. For once, this Sesshomaru is thankful of that wench, but I hate being in debt to someone. Next time we meet, I will have to..." _he growled quietly to himselfgrrrrr," and continued_,"...offer my services or my honor will be tarnished." _Suddenly Jaken's annoying screeching penetrated his thoughts to pierce his brain, "My lord Sesshomaru...my lord are you all right? Please wake up so this lowly Jaken is sure that you still live!"

Wincing at the pain and pitch that slammed into his sensitive ears, Sesshomaru reacted with one thought only, and that was to silence the noise that caused his head to pound. Squinting his eyes open a slit, he spotted his retainer standing by his feet; growling, Sesshomaru's leg lashed out in a viscous kick, sending the toad flying into the bushes across the clearing,"Ayeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" the toad screeched before he impacted with a thorn bush; barely seconds later, the toad was running around in circles screeching bloody murder,"My Lord why do you hate your servant so!...pull them out!...pull them out!...pull them out!"

Sesshomaru stared at Jaken with great amusement before his screeching became too much for his headache to handle. Growling low in the back of his throat, Sesshomaru called out sharply, "Jaken!"

The toad youkai froze in place; recognizing his masters tone and replied, "Yes, My Lord?"

"Shut up and go find Rin something to eat, and something cure my splitting headache," Sesshomaru growled, annoyed at the toad. The Taiyokai knew that the errand given to the toad would give him some peace and quiet until Jaken returned.

"Yes, My Lord Sesshomaru. Right away master," Jaken babbled as he backed out of the clearing, bowing and scraping.

Once Jaken disappeared from sight and hearing range, Sesshomaru heaved a sigh of relief before sitting up, but not with some difficulty. The pain in his shoulder throbbed viscously, but he knew that he could ignore it. It would be a few more days before it was completely healed. Turning his head, Sesshomaru lifted the edges of the bandages and inspected the damage. Wincing, at the sight of the large whole, he covered it back up and decided to see how his ward was doing. "Rin? Are you all right?" He received no answer, but persisted, if a bit more loudly, worry lacing his tone of voice, "Rin answer this Sesshomaru," he said as his clawed hand reached underneath his tail and shook the girl gently to awaken her.

"Hmmmm...Why does Rin have to get up now...was having a good dream," came the mumbled response from the little girl.

Sesshomaru sighed; greatly relieved that his Rin was alive and well and replied, "This Sesshomaru was... concerned...how do you feel?" he managed to choke out before changing the subject and continuing, "and Jaken will be back with breakfast soon, so it is time for you to get up."

"Umm,...ok, but Rin still feels strange," the little girl replied as she wiggled underneath the concealment of his grip and his tail. "Rin is too hot and wants to come out, but can't...can Sesshomaru-sama let Rin go now?" she asked.

Sesshomaru blinked, slowly; only now realizing that he still had her hidden from sight and that his arm was keeping her securely locked to his chest. He unwrapped his arm from around her waist while at the same time he removed his tail and let it rest against the cool green grass on the forest floor. Rin quickly scrambled up to stand in front of her lord and chirped, "Thank you, Sesshomaru-sama...Rin feels better now, but Rin still feels funny."

As the great Lord of the Western lands eyes focused on his ward, all thoughts came to a screeching halt. His once stodic mask cracked as his eyes widened, his jaw hung open in surprise. There standing in front of him was Rin, but she was no longer human. "Rin?" he breathed, completely shocked For there, standing in front of him was a white hared Inu-youaki pup!

* * *

AN: Well? What do you think?

Sorry this took me so long, but I was on a role and the chapter just ballooned out of control. I think that I'll insert some humor into the next few chapters. Gee...I wonder what Jaken's reaction will be?And what type of trouble do youkai pups get into?

I want to thank those who've reviewed! Boy! do I love the new feature on Now it's really easy to find Rin/Sesshomaru match ups. It used to take me hours just to find the right one. So, even before fanfiction decided to make the recent changes, I had decided to post a collection of story links on my website. I'm still adding them as I find them because the Internet is a large library and the hunt never ends. I also have a writers challenge for those who are interested in writing Rin/Sesshomaru stories. If you're interested, feel free to check it out.

Thanks for reading!

Sincerely,

D-Chan


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Sesshomaru gazed at Rin's new features with a mixture of amazement and confusion. "How is this possible?" Sesshomaru mumbled, leaning forward to get a better look at her face and hair. Rin's hair had grown to her waist and her cute side ponytail now hung at the same length. Her face, now sported four pink stripes, much like his own, but strangely enough, her eyes remained a rich golden honey brown. "Rin," Sesshomaru grasped a lock of her white hair and brought it forward where she could see it and continued, "The reason you are feeling funny is because you are no longer human."

Rin's eyes widened at the sight of her newly colored locks, she chirped excitedly, "Rin has white hair now! It's pretty!... Like Sesshomaru-sama's hair!" she clapped her hands, unable to contain her joy. But then she cocked her head, nibbling on her lower lip with small fangs and asked, "If Rin is not human anymore, than what is Rin now?"

"You are now an Inu-Youkai...like me," Sesshomaru replied as he lifted one of her small hands to inspect her claws. They were small and somewhat soft, but over time they would harden and become deadly weapons like his own claws. Sesshomaru thought, _"This Sesshomaru is somewhat relieved that Rin is now a youkai. White Inu females are very rare, so she is a good potential mate for me...I wonder what other Inu traits she has?"_ Lifting his hand again, Sesshomaru nudged Rin's shoulder in a silent request for her to turn around. Rin complied without complaint while staring at her small claw tipped hands.

"Hmmm," Sesshomaru murmured as he gazed at the tip of a small white tail that was just poking from underneath her kimono."I see we will have to remedy that with a trip to the seamstress," he said to himself, leaning back against a tree trunk. "Rin, you may turn around," Sesshomaru informed his ward, watching her carefully as she continued to inspect herself.

"Yes, Sesshomaru-sama, "Rin replied, glancing over her shoulder. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted something white and fluffy at the edge of her sight._"What is that? Rin can't see it very well, so Rin must catch it!"_ the little youkai pup thought, whirling around several times and reaching for it with both hands, but for some odd reason, she could not seem to catch it.

Sesshomaru chuckled quietly, a small smile graced his lips as he watched Rin chase her tail before she lost her balance and tumbled to the ground, panting from the effort. "This Sesshomaru remembers doing that when I was a young pup," the youkai lord murmured, greatly amused. But then, memories long forgotten surfaced, he shuddered in anticipated horror as one particular memory surfaced, _"This Sesshomaru also remembers being very clumsy and getting into all sorts of trouble without even trying."_ Focusing his attention towards his ward he commanded, "Rin, do not chase your tail."

"Rin has a tail?" she asked, rolling to her knees, Rin glanced behind herself in great interest. Spotting the small fluffy tail, she grasped it in her hands and giggled happily. "So pretty...like Sesshomaru-sama's tail" Rin glanced towards his tail and then back at her own before pouting, "Rin's tail is so small."

Sighing quietly, Sesshomaru decided to answer her just to make her stop pouting, "Rin, your tail is small because you are a pup. It will grow as you grow up."

"Oooh. Rin understands. Can Rin go play now?" she asked while silently fidgeting on the ground in front of him.

"Hn," Sesshomaru nodded his approval and then watched as Rin ran into a field of flowers; eyes keeping watch for any danger to his ward.

Rin trotted into the waist high grass and giggled in delight at the multitude of new smells that assailed her sensitive nose. A flash of blue caught her eyes and before she could register that it was a butterfly, her new instincts kicked in. She crouched down and started to stalk it. When she came within several yards of it, her excitement overwhelmed her instincts and she pounced. Unfortunately for Rin, she miss-calculated the distance and ended up startling it. The butterfly moved off to alight on another flower. Catching her lower lip caught between her fangs, Rin continued her game with more stealth. After many times of near successes, she began growling while her eyes flashed red.

"Rin, you should try to catch it by approaching from behind," Sesshomaru advised, giving her tips on how to hunt. He immediately noted the change of her eye color and murmured, "I will have to make sure Jaken does not anger Rin or this Sesshomaru will have to use Tensaiga to revive him."

A shadow passed overhead causing his attention to waver for a moment. Glancing upwards, he dismissed it as a cloud passing by, but then he heard the rustling of bushes off in the distance. Sniffing the air he detected the scent of a snake youkai and growled. Sesshomaru's instincts insisted on chasing away a potential threat to the pup.

Standing, Sesshomaru turned to face the threat before glancing over his shoulder towards his ward. Rin was currently stalking a squirrel and he knew that she would never catch it, but it would keep her occupied while he dealt with the bothersome youkai. "This Sesshomaru should have enough time to get rid of the intruder," he growled. Glancing at his injured shoulder, he tested it. "Good. It's now fully healed," he ripped off the bandages before melting into the shadows of the forest.

The scent of swamp water and marsh grasses floated though the air and tickled the nose of the small hunter. Rin froze in mid pounce, "It smells like Jaken's back." A new expression appeared on the little girls face, and disturbingly, it matched that of her guardian when a particularly evil thought crossed his mind. "Rin knows what to do," she murmured, she crouched down and melted into the tall grasses of the field to circle around her new prey.

* * *

As the snake youkai caught the scent of an Inuyoukai pup on the breeze his stomach made its demands known; it had been over a year since its last meal and this one would be perfectly defenseless. "Mmmm, thissss ssshould be an easssy meal," it muttered, before it started to creep closer towards the clearing. Suddenly, a voice growled warningly, "Leave and I will spare your worthless life."

The snake youkai hissed. He could not see or scent its origin. Determinedly the snake persisted, "Why ssshould I lisssssten to you? I have bussssnisss with a potential meal. You ssssshould let me passsss."

"Would this meal be in the clearing up ahead?" the voice asked with a hint of suspicion.

"Yessssss. A mossst delectable Inu-pup. Now out of my way before its guardian returnssssss." The snake moved closer, but froze at the sight of a male Inuyoukai stepping into the light.

Growling viciously, Seesshomaru cracked his joints in his remaining hand and snarled, "I don't think you will have to worry about your next meal because you will not live long enough to catch it. This Sesshomaru will see to that. Now die!" Before Sesshomaru had finished speaking, he spread his claws and attacked. Using his great speed, he shredded the snake youkai into a million pieces before it even knew what happened.

Satisfied, Sesshomaru flicked the blood from his claws, he growled while glaring at the bloody remains. Turning, Sesshomaru headed for the clearing where he had left Rin. Parting some branches, he exited the forest and glanced towards the field and smirked at the scene met his gaze, "This should be interesting."

Sesshomaru watched as Rin hid herself in the tall grass. He nodded in approval as she kept silent and circled around the toad youkai while making sure to keep down wind from her prey. _"Good. This Sesshomaru approves of her methods. Obviously Rin has learned from watching me, so training her will not be too difficult," _he thought.

* * *

Jaken walked towards the tree where he last left his master, glancing up he noticed that his master and Rin were gone, "Ahhhh! Master, why did you leave your faithful servant?" He waved his staff around and started running in frantic circles and wailed, "I've served you faithfully for over a century and now you have abandoned me..." he froze as he suddenly heard a rustling noise over to the right, whirling around he could find nothing there. "Huh?...what was that?" Gulping in nervousness, Jaken surveyed the area while bracing his staff of heads in front of him, "Who's there! You better come out or you'll be sorry!" The only answer the toad received were the chirping of the birds as the wind blew through the waist tall grass. "Must be my immagina...ahhhhhhh!"

Suddenly, something growled from behind him. Before the little toad could turn around, he was tumbling end over end to land on his stomach with a heavy weight pinning him in place. Glancing over his shoulder, Jaken could see two red eyes and a pair of fangs bearing down on him. "Help! My Lord! Save this lowly Jaken!" the toad youkai screeched.

"That is enough, Rin." Sesshomaru said as he stepped fully into the field. Noticing that the growling continued, Sesshomaru wrapped his tail around the little pup's waist and brought her to eye level. "I said enough!" Sesshomaru growled as he flicked the end of her nose. Rin yipped in surprise while the slight stinging sensation caused her instincts to kick in so she hung submissively in her lords grasp and sniffled, "Rin is sorry, Sesshomaru-sama. Rin does not know why she did that or why she got mad," the little girl whispered.

Lowering Rin to the ground, Sesshomaru wrapped his tail on his shoulder while nodding, "This Sesshomaru knows why and that is why I will teach you how to control yourself. Now go play." Turning, he faced the toad demon, but heard Rin's reply as she scampered off, "Yes, Sessomaru-sama."

As Jaken took in the girls new appearance he squawked, "What! Who! How can Rin be a demon!"

"Jaken?" The Inuyoukai Lord growled coldly.

"Yes, my Lord?" Jaken gulped and then decided that it would be a good idea to be silent.

Sesshomaru stared towards the distant horizon in contemplation and muttered, "This Sesshomaru wonders that himself, but I think it might have been that tree..." Shaking himself from his thoughts he glared at the toad and replied, "Jaken, do not make Rin angry. She has not been taught how to control her instincts or her youkai."

"Forgive this lowly Jaken, but may I ask, why?" the toad inquired, bowing. Glancing upward from his position he could just make out his masters visage. Sesshomaru smiled. Gulping, he thought, _"Oh, no! Lord Sesshomaru actually smiled! That's not good!" _Jaken began trembling in fear.

"I will allow her to use you as her chew toy if she looses control," Sesshomaru replied and then started walking into the forest. The western lord gave a sharp commanding bark directed towards his ward, before he melted into the forest.

Rin's head snapped up at the sound, she noticed her lord was leaving and yipped, "Rin is coming Sesshomaru-sama! Wait for Rin!" trotting after her lord and melting into the trees; leaving the still stunned toad youkai behind.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Several weeks had passed since the incident in the forbidden forest. Rin and Jaken kept up their usual arguments, which usually ended in Jaken being the loser. Several times Rin had almost lost control, but due to Sesshomaru's quick actions, he was able to snap her out of it. Now, Sesshomaru was deeply concerned by Rin's lack of training, so he continued to try and come up with a good training regimen for her that included using minor youkai as prey. But, every time he entered a different region, the lower youkai refused to come out from hiding; almost as if they sensed his intentions. The Western Lord knew that Rin needed to get control of her new powers, and she needed it soon.

Glancing towards the horizon, Sesshomaru noticed that the sun was rising. His instincts told him that that the day would be a warm one. Rin, he noted absently, was sleeping on his back, his tail hiding her from sight while her soft even breaths tickled his neck. Finally, deciding that he would have to use another youkai, Sesshomaru stopped walking and called out, "Jaken!"

"Yes, my Lord!" The toad youkai replied as he ran towards his master and bowed.

"Run into the forest and hide your scent and all signs of your passage. You will be Rin's training partner. You have until mid morning to make yourself scarce," Sesshomaru replied, narrowing his eyes at the toad just in case he dared to refuse.

Jaken shuddered inwardly at the sight of his masters expression and thought, _"Why does he do this to me! I'm not a training toy for a human pup that recently turned into a demon!...but if I don't, he'll kill me! "_ Gulping, he replied," Yes, my Lord...as you command." With a small bow, Jaken scurried off into the forest muttering quietly to himself all the way while carefully hiding any trace of his passage.

Sliding his tail off of his shoulder, Sesshomaru used it to nudge his charge awake while calling her name, "Rin. It is time to get up now. You have much to learn that this Sesshomaru must teach you to become strong."

Soft whimpers met his ears in mild protest while Rin's eyes fluttered open. Giving a tongue curling yawn that exposed her small fangs, Rin slid down Sesshomaru's back and landed in a sitting position."Mmmmm," Rin murmured, stretching, she blinked her eyes a few times before coming to full wakefulness and replied cheerily, "Good morning Sesshomaru-sama! Rin had a good dream. Rin was chasing Jaken-sama, but a bad youkai came..." Rin growled while she gave an animated description; baring her cute fangs and swiping at the air, demonstrating her dream, she continued, "..and Rin was able to hold against it until Sesshomaru-sama came and killed it!"

Sesshomaru listened to her description with great amusement. The only outward show of his emotions was a small quirk of his lips as he tried not to laugh at her antics. Nodding, he replied, "You did well in your dreams, Rin. But, today is the day that this Sesshomaru begins your training."

Rin smiled at her guardian with great contentment; it was not very often that she received praise from her lord. Excitement took control as her lord informed her that he would be training her to be a real Inuyoukai and Rin sprang to her feet and began racing around him in circles, unable to contain herself any longer, "Yay! Sesshomaru-sama is training Rin! Rin gets to learn to be a demon..." Rin paused in her frantic circling, cocking her head in curiosity, she asked, "What will Rin be learning today, Sesshomaru-sama?"

Rolling his eyes at her antics, Sesshomaru launched into a detailed description of Inuyoukai and their traits. "Pay attention, Rin," he said, and waited as Rin settled herself and stilled, eyes fixed on his visage, before continuing, "The first thing that you must know about Inu's is that we have an excellent sense of smell."

Rin nodded in fascination and chirped, "Yes. Sesshomaru-sama, Rin understands." To demonstrate, she took a few tentative sniffs and wrinkled her nose as an unpleasant odor wafted through the air. Sticking her tongue out, Rin pinched her nose and announced, "Ewwww! Stinky!"

Sesshomaru sniffed the air and recognized the scent as that of a recent battle that had taken place. The scent in particularly, was that of rotting corpses, he was quite used to the smell so he had ignored it. His lips quirked in a small imperceptable smile, while he replied," That is the scent of human death, Rin."

"Oooh. Rin doesn't like that smell," she replied, shaking her head while still pinching her nose. "It makes Rin's tummy feel funny."

"It does tend to be very unpleasant," Sesshomaru concurred, unconsciously wrinkling his nose to show his discomfort. "Now, another Inu trait is our hearing," the Inu lord began to pace in front of Rin while continuing," You may have several special attacks, so I want you to try and concentrate on your hands. Like this..." He lifted his clawed hand and cracked his joints; allowing his youkai to flow into his claws, they began to glow green as his poison dripped from his fingers to strike the ground with a quiet hiss.

Rin cocked her head, watching his demonstration and committing every minor detail to memory. "Let Rin try!" she said excitedly while staring at Sesshomaru for approval. He nodded his head encouragingly and stood there watching.

"Hmmm." Lifting one dainty clawed hand, she concentrated, her tongue sticking out slightly as she stared hard at her claws. Nothing happened for the first few minutes, but after she cracked her joints like Sesshomaru demonstrated, Rin could feel a strange burning sensation in her fingertips. Suddenly, the area around her claws began glowing a deep pink as acid began dripping from them. Startled, Rin gave a small yip as she jerked herself back, losing her balance, she tumbled backwards and landed on her back.

Sesshomaru chuckled at her reaction, he was greatly amused by this as well as pleased that Rin had managed to get it on her first try. "Very good, Rin. Now, since I have given you a few pointers on using your senses, you should have no problem finding Jaken. He is hiding himself in the forest and you will have to find him before sunset."

"Rin understands, Sesshomaru-sama. But, when should Rin start looking for Jaken-sama?" she asked, her tail wagged furiously with excitement.

Sesshomaru snorted when he noticed her obvious lack of control of her tail and sighed,"Rin."

"Yes, Sesshomaru-sama?" she yipped, while bouncing from foot to foot.

"Stand still and stop wagging your tail," Sesshomaru ordered while eyeing the moving white appendage.

"Why?" Rin questioned, puzzled.

"It is undignified for an Inuyoukai to wag their tail," the western lord said, haughtily.

Crestfallen, Rin sagged unhappily and sniffled, "Oh...is Sesshomaru-sama mad at Rin for wagging her tail?"

Noticing the change in her once flowery scent, Sesshomaru inwardly cringed at his blunder before deciding to correct it, "No. This Sesshomaru is not mad at Rin. This Sesshomaru is teaching you that tail wagging in an Inuyoukai is not proper etiquette. You will learn to act like a lady, but since you are a pup; tail wagging is an involuntary response. You will learn to control it as well."

Rin smiled at his words and replied, "Yes, Sesshomaru-sama. Rin will try not to wag her tail."

Nodding in approval, Sesshomaru motioned with his only hand and replied, "Good. Now use your nose to locate Jaken. I will be following you, but I will not help you find him."

"Yes, Sesshomaru-sama!" Rin chirped happily before sniffing the air for Jaken's scent. Giving a yip in excitement when she caught a subtle scent of swamp water and marsh grasses, Rin dashed off into the forest.

Sesshomaru cursed silently at the level of noise Rin was making as she dashed through the forest. _"This Sesshomaru will have to teach Rin that when following prey, she must remember to move silently or she will attract unwanted attention from other youkai."_ Deciding that enough was enough, Sesshomaru barked, the pitch of the sound ensured that only Inuyoukai would hear it and not any other predators. Several seconds later, Rin appeared out of the bushes, head tilted sideways, with a puzzled expression on her face, "Sesshomaru-sama called for Rin?"

"Hnnn," Sesshomaru answered. "Rin, you were making too much noise and it will attract unwanted attention. There are many youkai that would make an easy meal out of an Inu-pup. This Sesshomaru will protect you, but you must not go too far."

Rin gave a soft whimper in dismay at being chastised and sniffled as tears threatened to spill from her honey gold eyes, "Rin understands, Sesshomaru-sama. Rin promises to be more quiet." She dug her toe in the dirt while glancing upwards, giving him the most dejected expression imaginable. Sesshomaru sighed, he felt a small pang in his heart at the sight of her face, reaching out his clawed hand, he tilted her chin up and replied, "This Sesshomaru is not angry at you. It is just that this Sesshomaru does not want you hurt, Rin."

Rin smiled, banishing all feelings of sadness and grinned as she chirped, "Rin understands now...Sesshomaru-sama likes Rin!"

Sesshomaru gave a slight start in surprise, blinked and frowned briefly as he realized that she was right, but his pride would not let him admit it, so he replied, "You are not as annoying as Jaken. So, this Sesshomaru thinks that your presence is tolerable." Shaking his head slightly, he said, "Now, go find Jaken, but don't wander to far from this Sesshomaru."

Nodding her head, Rin replied, "Yes, Sesshomaru-sama!" before locating Jaken's scent again and this time, she started walking off in the direction the scent lead her instead of running. Sesshomaru, following closely behind; keeping an eye on her; determined to keep her safe from the many youkai he sensed close by.

* * *

AN: It has come to my attention that chapter 4 has some scenes in it that mirrors Tiger Timberwolf's fic called Pup Problems. Rest assured that we have hashed it out and concluded that it does in fact mirror his/hers to a point, but in no way was it being copied from his/her story. 

GreaterBeast-Xellas asked me if Rin was going to learn to transform into a dog?

**(Answer: Sort of.-I'm not gonna tell all of it, so you'll have to read and find out.)**

Then you suggested that it would be neat if they could both mate in dog form when Rin gets older.

**(Answer: Now this really made me blink in surprise!... Hmmm, I don't think so... since if they mated in dog form it would just be mating and no pleasure involved for the both of them. However, I might use a few doggy characteristics in that area. As for having a lemon later... I'm thinking about it.)**

Thanks for the encouragement to everyone who has reviewed! I'm so surprised that I've gotten this many reviews in such a short time...it's great!

Sincerely,

D-Chan


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Jaken ran as fast as his short legs could carry him, muttering and cursing all the while, "Stupid human...turned youkai...how?...it's not possible...let this Jaken become a chew toy..pfffft, I'll fry her first!...but then the master will kill me!...stupid, stupid, stupid...grrrrrrrr...what did this Jaken do to deserve this?" Lowering his voice, Jaken did a perfect impersonation of his master, **"Jaken, go hide,**" he says! ...**You will be Rin's training partner**, he says." Pausing briefly, Jaken wailed quietly, "...why does he do this to meeeeeee?"

Heaving a sigh, Jaken glanced at his surroundings and spotted the perfect place to hide. Quickly, he made his way through a strange smelling flower filled meadow towards a pond that had a heavy growth of green and brown marsh grasses, "Ahh, perfect! That brat will never locate me now," Jaken cried as he hid himself in the tall grasses. Then, the little toad youkai turned his focus inward, slowing his heart rate and breathing until they were barely detectable even by youkai standards, and waited.

* * *

The sun was just beginning to make its decent in the west when Rin entered a clearing with a pond in the center. She had been searching all day for the little toad and so far Rin had managed to stir up allot of trouble. "Rin is glad that Rin listened to Sesshomaru-sama to stay close to him because Rin found a bear youkai, two badger youkai and one cat youkai" She bared her teeth in remembrance and continued in her train of thought, "They were mean to Rin and tried to eat Rin, so Rin didn't like them. Rin is happy that Sesshomaru-sama showed Rin how to deal with them..." She wrinkled her nose, "but it was very messy," she muttered, remembering how Sesshomaru had shredded them with his claws. 

Rin paused in the middle of a patch of black flowers as she surveyed the area. Sniff...Sniff her nose tested the air for Jaken's scent, but she could not locate it because a new scent invaded her nostrils. Frowning, Rin tried to determine what this new sweet scent meant. She had never smelled it before and so became puzzled by it. Turning, Rin opened her mouth to ask her lord what it was, when suddenly she let lose a great big sneeze," a...a...AAAAAACHOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Sesshomaru paused in mid-stride at the sound of Rin's sneeze. Rolling his eyes in exasperation, he closed his eyes briefly while pinching the bridge of his nose and commenting, "Rin. You are supposed to be hunting." Lowering his arm, he ran his claws through the fur of his tail and continued, "...that means that when you hunt, you should use stealth to locate your prey." The Western lord shook his head and growled quietly while glancing skyward, he could feel his patients wearing thin, and another headache was beginning to make itself known, he thought to himself, _"How did father manage to raise this Sesshomaru and not lose his temper? Rin is doing well, but she makes so many mistakes...like I did when I was but a pup."_ Lowering his eyes, he stared at his charge who, at the moment, was covering her nose and giving him a sheepish expression. He sighed in defeat and instructed, "Rin, next time, try not to alert everything within a five mile radius that we are coming."

Grinning, Rin replied," Hai! Sesshomaru-sama!...But Rin could not help it. The flowers made Rin sneeze." She rubbed her nose vigorously before pressing it to her head and mumbling, "Rin feels dizzy." She wobbled as she took another step, then she began to sneeze several times in succession.

Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes at her comment and the fact that she couldn't stop sneezing. He suddenly had a sinking sensation in the pit of his stomach and he didn't like it. Quickly, he walked over towards his charge and inquired, "What do you mean you feel dizzy?" Sesshomaru broke off in mid sentence as a sweet scent hit his sensitive nose, _"This Sesshomaru remembers that smell...It is the youkaria flower. Father told me that all young pups must avoid smelling it. I have got to get Rin out of here before she..."_

Suddenly, there was a bright flash of light that originated from where Rin was standing. Sesshomaru's gaze traveled upwards as he growled in annoyance,"damntoo late."

Rin, startled by the strange light and her recent bought of dizziness, opened her eyes to see that the ground was much farther away than before, and yelped in surprise, "Yearrrrlllp!" Surprised by the sound she made, Rin backed up quickly; but she tripped as her back legs tangled with her front legs. She tried to regain her balance but, teetered towards her lord as her balance shifted dangerously forward.

Eyes widening slightly, Sesshomaru cursed, "Stupid toad! He had to pick the one place that was filled with youkaria flowers!" Sesshomaru quickly jumped out of the way, he had no desire to become acquainted with the ground while being crushed under several hundred pounds of a dog demon pup.

_"Aaaaaaaa!"_ Rin, yelped at her lack of coordination. She teetered every which way until she started falling towards the pond. Sesshomaru, knowing what would happen next, quickly took to the sky to evade getting soaked.

A flash of green from the reeds caught his attention as Rin began to fall forward. "Iiiieeeeeee!" a screeching yell echoed throughout the clearing as Jaken noticed the impending danger and tried to scramble out of the harms way. Sesshomaru watched and grinned ferrally as he recognized his servant's yell and growled angrily, " Jaken! You should know better than to lead Rin into a field littered with youkaria flowers!"

"Yokaria flowers? What are..." the toad glanced around the field and finally noticed his folly, "oh nooooo! This Jaken is sorry but...," the toads apology was quickly cut off as Rin's massive weight landed directly on top of him and the rest of his apology came out as a groan. Sighing, Sesshomaru slowly lowered himself to land on Rin's shoulder. Speaking softly for her benefit, he managed to calm her down, "Rin, This Sesshomaru would like you to sit up."

Rin whimpered softly,"_What if Rin falls down again?_"

Sesshomaru understood the language of Inuyoukai and decided that he needed to soothe her fear. Gently, he stroked her head while letting lose a deep rumbling purr. This had an immediate effect of calming the inu-pup and he explained, "It is all right, Rin. You can move slowly. Place your paw directly in front of you and push up while slowly backing up with your front legs."

"_Yes, Sesshomaru-sama,"_ Rin yipped as she followed his orders and pushed herself into a sitting position. Unfortunately for Jaken, Rin put pressure on the one paw pinning him to the ground.

"Waaak!" the toad squeaked in pain as he felt his bones grinding together from her weight.

Jumping to the ground, Sesshomaru glanced upwards and spoke softly so as not to startle her, "Rin, this Sesshomaru will show you how to change back. Watch me to see how it is done." He gathered his youkai and slowly transformed into his true form. Glancing down at his charge, Sesshomaru noticed that he was six times her size.

Rin's eyes rose upwards as her gaze followed a path from her lords massive paws towards his head, "Waaa!" Startled by Sesshomaru's sheer bulk, Rin tipped over backwards, feet pointed towards the sky, while yipping in surprise. Amused by her reaction, Sesshomaru lowered his massive head and nuzzled her in assurance before backing up and issuing a series of yips and barks,_" Gather your youkai, Rin. Picture yourself as you were before and will the change to happen." _

Rolling over and righting herself, Rin yipped, "_Yes, Sesshomaru-sama!_" Before Rin could follow his instructions, a familiar scent hit her nose, "_It's Kagome-onichan!_" Yipping in excitement, Rin rolled to her four feet and dashed off through the undergrowth in pursuit of her target.

_"Rin, stop!"_ Sesshomaru commanded his ward, but in her excitement, she failed to hear him. _"Damn!" _Sesshomaru cursed as she disappeared from sight. Sniffing the air to try and see which direction she went, he detected his brothers scent and cursed once more, "_Shit!"_ Quickly, he changing back into his humanoid form to conserve energy and to stop his brother from accidentally killing Rin; after all, the sight of a large demon barreling down on you is an unnerving experience, even if that demon is just a pup. By the time he had fully detransformed, he noticed that she had a considerable head start due to her size. Bunching his leg muscles and springing into action, Sesshomaru proceeded to chase Rin through the forest while cursing fluently.

Jaken quickly recovered managed to see that he was being left behind, chased after his master while screaming, "Lord Sesshomaru!...what his this lowly Jaken done that you have abandoned meeeeeeee!"

* * *

AN: Hi! I'm glad you guys like this story! 

To answer some questions from my readers about Rin growing up...**don't worry, we're getting there soon. There are some things I'd like to do to Kagome and Inu-Yasha before Rin grows up.**

**Thanks for reviewing!**


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

As Kagome walked through the forest with a sleeping Shippo safely tucked into her backpack, she thought about the past few months while hunting for shards. _"Boy, am I exhausted. Why is it that every time we come across a demon that has a jewel shard, it tries to steal the ones I have?...These past few months were really monotonous, but at least we managed to get the last shard..." _Kagome paused in mid thought, before smiling at one memory and murmured,I wonder how Sesshomaru and Rin are doing?"

"You shouldn't worry about him. He's a demon so he'll be fine," Miroku interjected, matching his pace to hers. "I'm sure that he's healed now and is taking good care of Rin."

Kagome sighed, "I know, but I still worry. It was very strange that Sesshomaru got hurt badly enough that his wounds weren't healing."

"What do yo mean?" Sango asked, coming up along side of Kagome; quirking an eyebrow she murmured,"You never mentioned that to us before."

"I'm sorry, but it slipped my mind after I got into another argument with Inu-Yasha, "Kagome replied while absently blowing a strand of hair from her eyes.

Sango placed one hand on Kagome's shoulder, reassuringly, "You're a good healer, Kagome. I'm sure that with everything Keade has taught you, Sesshomaru should have made a full recovery." Grinning, Sango continued, "Besides, if he's anything like Inu-Yasha, he's probably too stubborn to die."

Kagome chuckled, quietly, "You know...I think you're right. Both, Sesshomaru and Inu-Yasha have that in common!" Sango giggled uncontrollably at Kagome's comment, but then rolled her eyes at the hanyou's predictable comeback.

"WE DO NOT, WENCH!" Inu-Yasha yelled, growling and walking backwards.

"What did you call me?" Kagome growled, fist clenched at her sides as her eyebrows lowered in displeasure.

"Keh! I called you a wench, bitch!" Inu-Yasha replied, completely oblivious to Kagome's twitching eyebrow.

"SIT!" the miko yelled while crossing her arms and glaring down at the hanyou.

WHOMP

"Bitch! Why the fuck did you do that for!" Inu-Yasha yelled from deep within the Inu-Yasha shaped crater.

"Don't call me that!" Kagome growled while Sango and Miroku watched the whole performance with long suffering expressions.

"Inu-Yasha, maybe you should be nicer to Kagome-sama and then you won't get sat as much," Miroku suggested as he leaned over the crater.

"Yeah!" Shippo chirped as his head emerged from Kagome's backpack. He had been sleeping until Inu-Yasha had started yelling. Now, Shippo was thoroughly annoyed at the hanyou; crossing his arm in an authoritative manner he continued with his nose in the air, "If you were nicer to Kagome then you'd probably would have finished the mating ritual by now!"

"WHAT!" Inu-Yasha screamed, completely embarrassed by the fox kits comments. His face flushed six shades of red while his mouth decided to get ahead of his brain, he screamed, "HOW THE HELL DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THAT AND WHY THE HELL WOULD I WANT TO MATE WITH A BITCH LIKE HER!"

"Grrrrrr," Kagome growled; her anger getting the better of her, she fisted her hands while her hair covered her eyes. What Inu-Yasha had screamed, had hurt. Sniffling, she gritted her teeth, she counted to ten to contain her anger, but it didn't work as she finally snapped, "**SIT**!"

Miroku winced as Inu-Yasha hit the ground harder than he normally would have. "Kagome must have unconsciously put more power behind that command...she must really be angry," he murmured. Leaning against his staff he shook his head at the stupidity of his hanyou friend. He knew that every time Inu-Yasha got flustered or even when someone mentioned his budding relationship with Kagome, he would start insulting her and lose what ground he had previously gained. Suddenly, Miroku stiffened, "Sango, I sense a demon heading this way...wait...there appears to be two and one of them is very powerful."

"I think we'd better break this up before Inu-Yasha gets his back broken," Sango replied before turning towards the arguing couple. "Kagome, I think you should..." she stopped when she noticed it was already too late.

"Bitch!" Inu-Yasha yelled as he lifted his face from the dirt, scowling.

"**SIT,SIT,SIT,SIT,SIT,SIT**!" Kagome yelled, furiously. "I'm not a bitch, wench or any other name! My name is Kagome!...**KA**..**GO**...**ME!** Say it right or the next time you'll get to see America when I'm done S-wording you!"

"Ooooowww! I think you broke my back this time, bitch!" Inu-Yasha mumbled, before catching wind of the scent of demons nearby and heading closer. "Shit! I can't get up until this spell wears off!" Frantically, Inu-Yasha tried to push himself up off the ground, growling and cursing for a good five minutes. Suddenly, he heard several gasps of surprise; raising his head, Inu-Yasha managed to peer out of the crater to see a elephant sized white dog demon barreling strait towards Kagome. "Fuck!" Inu-Yasha cursed; he could barely feel his legs, and he knew that he'd be able to stand in a few more minutes, but that wasn't soon enough before Kagome got seriously hurt,"KAGOME LOOK OUT...RUN!"

"Huh?" Kagome frowned and glanced around the clearing. "I don't see anything, Inu-Yasha." Suddenly, the ground beneath their feet started quaking. "What the ...it's an earthquake!" Kagome cried while frantically windmilling her arms to maintain her balance. Before Kagome knew what had happened, she was bowled over by something white. "Ieeeeeeee,"She landed on the ground with a thud,"ooof!" she grunted as the wind was knocked out of her. "Unnnnng!"She murmured as she started regaining her senses, she felt something warm and wet licking her cheek.

Seeing a demon on top of her friend, Sango pulled her bone boomerang from her shoulder and stepped closer to Kagome to get a better angle for her attack. Before she could attack, Inu-Yasha rushed right in front of her screaming, "Get the hell off of her!" while headed straight for the dog demon with claws poised to rend and shred it to pieces."DIE!"

* * *

"Dammit!" Sesshomaru growled as he raced through the forest in pursuit of Rin, he could smell his brother and his companions just up ahead. He had just reached the entrance to the clearing when he heard his brother scream, "DIE!" 

Sesshomaru reacted without thinking; eyes bleeding red, poison dripping from his claws, he acted on instinct and lunged, tackling his brother in mid air. They rolled several feet before stopping with the western lord on top. His demon blood raging, Sesshomaru's icy mask cracked; snarling viciously at his younger brother, the western lord bared his fangs and tried to tear out Inu-Yasha's throat while Inu-Yasha was pinned to the ground, "You will not hurt Rin, half-breed!"

Inu-Yasha stopped struggling, but kept a steady pressure on his brothers arm and chin to keep his throat from harm. He blinked in confusion as Sesshomaru's words struck a direct hit, "W...waaaaa?" Frowning, the hanyou glanced over at Kagome from the corner of his eyes to see that the demon wasn't hurting her, but licking her face. It's tail was wagging in happiness, the demon..._"Rin?"_ he thought in disbelief; continued her ministrations while letting yipping happily. Glancing back at his brother, Inu-Yasha screamed, "That's RIN?...how the hell did that happen!"

Sango, Miroku, Shippo and Kagome couldn't help overhearing Inu-Yasha, blinking in disbelief, they gasped, "That's Rin!"

Kagome, though, took it a bit further and exclaimed, "Awww! I think she's cute!" Rin yipped with joy as she heard Kagome and proceeded to frantically show her affection by giving the miko a tongue bath.

Sesshomaru noticed that Inu-Yasha had relaxed, decided that Rin was safe and got off of the hanyou. Hearing Rin's yip of excitement, his eyes faded into their normal golden hue while he glanced over to see the tongue bath commence. Rolling his eyes in exasperation and standing, Sesshomaru groaned inwardly before speaking, "Rin. Inu-Youkai do not do that to humans."

Rin froze in mid lick and whined questionably, _"Why."_

Hearing her reply Inu-Yasha snickered quietly. He noticed Sesshomaru's long suffering expression and the fact that Sesshomaru's remaining hand was pinching the bridge of his nose. Grinning, Inu-Yasha broke into a fit of laughter at his brother's predicament, "Why...haha!"

Sesshomaru ignored the laughing hanyou, sighing audibly, he said, "Rin, It is not proper demon behavior for an Inu-Youkai. Most often, you will end up crushing the weak human to death. Now, get off of her and be careful to not put any weight on her while you are getting up."

"Yes, Sesshomaru-sama!"Rin barked in agreement, before carefully putting her weight on her front paws and rising to a sitting position. Kagome sighed as Rin's weight lifted off of her legs. Quickly, she pulled herself out from under the pup and backed away a few feet to get a better look at her. Finally, after a few minutes of inspection, Kagome turned her attention towards Sesshomaru and asked, "How did Rin turn into a demon?"

Sesshomaru thought about whether or not to answer, but then remembering that he owed the miko a favor for curing him of the strange poison, he replied, "This Sesshomaru does not know. However, I was on my way to see Bouksano to see if he would know the cause of this."

"Who the heck is that?" Inu-Yasha asked, his ears twitching in curiosity. Kagome echoed Inu-Yasha's question,"Yes, who or what is Bouksano-sama?"

Growling in annoyance at his brother's lack of knowledge, Sesshomaru ignored Inu-Yasha and continued, "Bouksano is one of father's old friends. He is a tree demon and he would know since he's been around for over one thousand years."

"Then hopefully he will know how this happened," Miroku replied while watching Rin's demon form from the corner of his eye. He could see her fidgeting as her attention became focused on Inu-Yasha's twitching ears. Deciding that he should say something, Miroku cleared his throat, "Ahem, ...Inu-Yasha, could you stop twitching your ears?"

Growling at the monk, Inu-Yasha snarled, "Why the hell are you concerned about my ears?"

"Well, I...," Miroku began to reply, but sighed as a streak of white bounded past him to land directly on top of his hanyou friend.

POUNCE!

"AAAAAAAAA! Get off a me!" Inu-Yasha screamed from under several hundred pounds of demon puppy. As the hanyou took a breath to curse out the pup, he suddenly heard the sound of his friends laughing at him. Glaring at them, Inu-Yasha screamed,"Shut up! It's not funny!"

"Hn, on the contrary, little brother. This Sesshomaru thinks that this is very funny," the western lord replied, smirking. He had noticed Rin's sudden move and had wondered what had caught her attention. Now, seeing that she had focused on his brothers ears, he smiled inwardly as Inu-Yasha was crushed under several hundred pounds that belonged to his ward.

Sesshomaru's reply caused everyone to laugh harder. Kagome fell on her butt, clutching her stomach and laughing. She managed to gasp out a reply, "Y-you...hahaha...c-can't...hurt...Rin,...hehehe...s-s-she's...only...a...ch-ch-child, Inu-Yasha!...hahahaha... I-it was re-really...funny!"

"Growling loudly, Inu-Yasha screamed," Shut up!" Then, turning his attention towards Rin, he glared at her and growled, "Get off me!"

Rin, ignored Inu-Yasha's barking and proceeded to give him a tongue bath, tail wagging in excitement. Inu-Yasha was completely freaked out and yelled, "Oh, Gross!...Sesshomaru! Get her off of me!"

Smiling, Sesshomaru gave a snort of laughter and decided that he'd had enough of listening to his brothers whining and said, "Rin. Get off of him and change back, now."

"Yes, Sesshomaru-sama!" she yipped before she was surrounded by a pink sphere of youkai. Slowly the ball of light shrunk and when it completely disappeared, it revealed a white hared Inuyoukai child sitting on top of Inu-Yasha's chest. Grinning down at the Inu-hanyou, Rin cocked her head and chirped, "Hello! Inu-Yasha...Rin's name is Rin!"

Scowling, Inu-Yasha secretly admitted that he liked the child, but refused to show it. He could feel his lips twitching and tried to hide the smile that was trying to appear and replied, "Feh!"

Ignoring his brother for the moment, the western lord turned towards Kagome, "Miko. This Sesshomaru requests to have a word with you. It is a matter of honor. You have my word that I will not hurt you." Then, he turned and walked into the forest, making sure he was far enough that Inu-Yasha couldn't hear their conversation.

Nodding her head, Kagome replied, "Sure," and followed him.

Miroku turned towards Inu-Yasha and asked, worriedly, "You're not going to let her go with him are you?"

"Yes. He could hurt her, Inu-Yasha," Sango whispered, giving the forest where Kagome had disappeared from sight a probing glance.

"Feh!" Inu-Yasha grunted and crossing his arms, he sat down on the ground and replied, "I know my brother and when he gives his word, he means it. Kagome will be fine."

"If you say so, Inu-Yasha," both Sango and Miroku replied, settling themselves on the ground to wait for their return.

* * *

Stopping in another clearing, Sesshomaru remained silent as he tried to decide the best way to broach the subject. He didn't want to lower himself, but he knew that he had to pay his debt to the miko for saving his life. Sighing inaudibly, he turned and faced Inu-Yasha's wench and broke the silence, "This Sesshomaru owes you a debt of honor for saving his life. For that, you may ask anything of this Sesshomaru, so I may repay that debt." 

Kagome froze, completely shocked at his words. Several minutes passed as she tried to process this latest development before she noticed Sesshomaru's impatient glance. "Oh, um...I see. I was happy to help, since it would have been a shame to leave Rin unprotected and she really seems to care for you," Kagome murmured as she tried to think up a way for the Western Lord to repay her. Finally coming to a decision, she hesitantly replied, "To repay your debt to me, I ask that you and Inu-Yasha start acting like normal loving brothers should. I'm sure your father wouldn't have wanted you two to fight over the Tetsaiga. Also, I ask that you help us in our quest against Naraku."

Sesshomaru winced inwardly. He really hated the idea of showing affection towards his brother, but he knew it was his responsibility to take care of his brother. His father had wished it so as he lay dying from his wounds. In his anger over the loss of his father, Sesshomaru had chased his brother away. He really didn't hate his brother, but the hanyou could be annoying..."_Just like all little brothers are._" the thought ran briefly through his mind.

Sighing in defeat, Sesshomaru nodded and replied, "Very well. This Sesshomaru will help you defeat Naraku and...I will not kill my brother...even though he deserves it for being ill mannered."

Kagome grinned in happiness, "Great!" Clapping her hands once, she turned back towards the way they came. Pausing, she glanced over her shoulder and said, "I know Inu-Yasha can be a pain, but he just needs to learn some manners...after all, no one taught him how to behave. He was out here all alone and trying to stay alive."

"Hn," Sesshomaru replied, noncommittally before following her back towards the clearing to inform the rest of the group that he would be accompanying them.

* * *

AN: "Hi! I've had several people ask me about the rating. Well, I'm leaving it as an R rating because it is going to get really bloody in the upcoming chapters. The first eight chapters are leading up to where I want to go...kind of to set the stage; if you will. Also, yes, there will be lemon scenes later in this fic. I just need to do a few things first to Inu-Yasha and the gang in order to lead up to the special fight scene. 

Thanks for all of the reviews! Wow, I'm impressed. This is the first time I've reached 60 reviews in such a short time. It's appreciated!"


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Rin awoke to the sound of birds singing their morning songs, smiling, she sat up and stretched before opening her eyes and yawning. Glancing around the clearing, she tried to catch the tell tale glimmer of silver and white that marked the presence of her guardian. Frowning, Rin sniffed the air delicately since she couldn't see any sign of him. Finding that his scent was now a few hours old, Rin began to fear that her master had left her for good and called out loudly, "Sesshomaru-sama!...Sesshomaru-sama!"

"Oi! Rin!" Inu-Yasha yelled, walking into the clearing carrying a few skinned rabbits for their breakfast.

Sniffling, Rin whirled around to face the hanyou and cried, "Where is Rin's Sesshomaru-sama?"

Growling in annoyance, Inu-Yasha took one look at the tears that threatened to fall and felt a slight pang in his chest. He knew that he could fight demons and human bandits with no problem, but seeing a girl...any kind of girl cry...made him want to make them stop at any cost. "He went to get the toad and will be back soon...so stop crying!"

"INU-YASHA!" Kagome yelled admonishingly from behind him. Glaring at him, Kagome continued to rant,"Don't you dare yell at her!"

Rin stopped crying to watch the proceedings with great interest. She glanced towards the hanyou to see the terrified expression on his face and thought, _"Why is he afraid of his own mate?"_

He whirled around to see her angry expression and gulped," But..." he started to reply, but never got to finish as Kagome yelled,"SIT!" and he went crashing to the ground with a painful thud.

Rin giggled uncontrollably as she watched Inu-Yasha hit the ground hard enough to make a decent sized crater. _"Now, Rin understands why he's afraid of his own mate...Kagome-nechan can punish him when he's been bad,_" the little inu-pup thought as she watched Inu-Yasha rising from the ground while cursing and glaring at Kagome.

Kagome glared at the hanyou before turning with a smile to face Rin, "Rin-chan. Sesshomaru left late last night and will be back soon, so don't worry. You will be traveling with us from now on, so why don't we go eat breakfast?"

"Yay! Rin and Sesshomaru-sama is traveling with Kagome-nechan and Shippo-chan!"she yelled with a cheerful grin. Rin leapt to her feet and followed the miko telling her about her adventures while traveling with her Sesshomaru-sama.

Inu-Yasha watched them go and grumbled, "Feh!" before beginning the task of spearing the hares and roasting them for their breakfast. _"I guess there's nothing more to do, but wait for Sesshomaru to show up,_" he thought while staring into the forest with a thoughtful expression.

* * *

"Lord Sesshomaru!..." Jaken called as he searched under a bush for his master. Moving towards a tall tree, he cupped his hands around his mouth and called again, "Lord Sesshomaruuuuu!" Jaken knew that his master left him over three hours ago to go after Rin. "Ever since that human was changed into a pup, she's been nothing but trouble!" Jaken grumbled as he moved further and further along his masters scent trail. Pausing once again, Jaken bent over and glanced into a pit and called, "Lord Sesshomaru...why have you left your loyal servant behind!" Hearing a noise nearby, Jaken ran towards a cave and called out,"Lord Sesshomaruuu...are you in there!"

The sound of a foot fall echoed in the cave and Jaken sighed happily, "My lord I've been lookin...g" he trailed of a second later when a pair of glowing red eyes appeared. As the eyes came closer Jaken could see that it wasn't his master at all and started backing up. When the animal growled menacingly, Jaken screamed in fear and dropped his staff, "Aaaiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!"and began running. Jaken glanced over his shoulder and saw the massive form of an adult bear bearing down on him with the intent to kill. Jumping over a swipe from one of its massive paws, the toad demon cried, "Lord Sesshomaru! Please come save meeeeeeeee!...pant...pant ..." Seeing a bolt hole in a tree Jaken ran faster and managed to dive into it and avoid getting cut in half by another swipe of the bears paw. Cringing and shaking, the toad demon watched as the bear tried to pry him out by widening the hole in the tree. Seeing this, Jaken screamed,"AAAAAAA!..."and climbed higher into the hollow trunk.

* * *

After a sleepless night spent inside the hollow tree trunk, the bear gave up and left the toad demon to go find better prey. Jaken waited until he could no longer smell the animal to climb out and continue tracking his master. As the sun reached the highest point in the sky, Jaken was depressed and yelled, "Master, where have you gone!" Turning around, Jaken began trudging back towards their original camp, but bumped into something hard enough to send him crashing to the ground. Shaking his head, Jaken glanced towards the object he had smacked into and saw the hem of a long white Kimono. Raising his gaze, the toad demon's eyes started watering in happiness at the sight of his master, but he managed to hold it in and cried, "Master! What happened...where did you go...why did you leave me?"

Sesshomaru stared down at his servant with a cold indifferent expression before narrowing his eyes at Jaken's continuous questions. Lifting his hand, he punched the toad on the head hard enough to stun him, "Shut up, Jaken."

_"Owwww!"_ Jaken thought bowing repeatedly and babbling, "Yes, master...as you wish. This lowly Jaken is yours to com..."

"Jaken!" Sesshomaru growled, eyes flashing red in annoyance.

Jaken froze in midword and gulped. He could see that his master was not happy about something. Glancing around, Jaken noticed that Rin was missing. "Ummm...My Lord?"

"Hn?" Sesshomaru replied as he started walking back towards Inu-Yasha's camp. He didn't glance back because he knew that the toad would follow. _"If he asks one more question about where I was...I'll shred him." _Sesshomaru thought angrily. He was a bit upset about having to be nice towards his brother, especially since the incident last night when Inu-Yasha had opened his mouth and insulted him. Sesshomaru really didn't mind their banter, he knew that he enjoyed it and it kept him from becoming bored. Sesshomaru smiled as he remembered knocking his brother into a tree before stalking off in a fury. He was twice honor bound not to kill his brother; one promise to his father and the other to the Miko, _"That is the only reason why I stay with them and not kill him. But,...If I am honest with myself, I go after the Tetsiaga because it is a more powerful sword then Tensiaga and...well..that and the fact that my brother is almost as strong as me."_ Sighing, Sesshomaru listened as his servant asked yet another question. He lifted his claws in preparation, but relaxed when Jaken asked, "Where is Rin?"

Not pausing, Sesshomaru answered, "She's back at camp with my brother and his mate. We will be traveling with them until Naraku is defeated."

Jaken's jaw dropped and his eyes widened until they almost popped out of their sockets, he tripped and squawked, "W-what!..., but..but...why master?"

Sesshomaru stopped walking and glared at the toad before replying, "This Sesshomaru must repay a debt. It is a matter of honor."

Not noticing his masters tone of voice, Jaken continued, "But with that hanyou!"

Growling, Sesshomaru kicked Jaken into a tree and coldly snarled, "This Sesshomaru is merely fulfilling a promise to my father and the Miko who saved my life. You will not say another word about this...or I will leave your bloodied corpse for the birds to pick at."

Trembling in fear, Jaken nodded his head vigorously and squawked, "Yes, My Lord! Please forgive this lowly Jaken" The toad crawled closer and started kissing the western lords boots while babbling, "I most humbly beg your forgiveness!"

"Hn," he replied, feeling somewhat better for releasing his pent up tension and anger out on the toad, Sesshomaru nodded before calmly walking off into the trees.

Jaken remained facing the ground for a few more moments before glancing up to see the back of his master disappearing into the forest. Scrambling to his feet, Jaken grabbed the staff of heads and ran after him yelling, "Master! Wait for meeeeee!"

* * *

Back at camp, Kagome had just finished cleaning up the remnants of breakfast. Taking a deep breath, she wrinkled her nose in disgust when she caught a whiff of herself, "_Yuck! I need a bath. I'm surprised that Sesshomaru didn't say anything...I guess he's too well mannered to say anything rude...maybe Sango-chan would like one too?"_ Glancing up from putting away the last of the mess, Kagome cleared her throat and whispered quietly, "Hay Sango?" 

"Yes?" Sango replied as she unsheathed her katana and began sharpening it with a wet stone she withdrew from her belt.

"Let's go take a bath. I spotted a hot spring not to far from here when I spoke to Sesshomaru last night," Kagome replied while gathering the necessary supplies from her pack. Pausing, she glanced around the clearing to see that Miroku was currently occupied with keeping Shippo and Rin entertained.

"I don't know Kagome," Sango replied as she inspected her katana. "We'd have to make sure that Miroku wouldn't follow us...I would love a bath, but if he peeks on us one more time..."

"Shhhh!" Kagome replied, finger covering her lips to emphasize her point. "Miroku's busy telling Shippo and Rin some stories, so if we can sneak out of camp without him noticing..."

Sango glanced towards the hoshi and grinned. "Sure. Let me get my things," Sango replied as she quickly set about gathering her bathing supplies. Standing, Sango noticed that Kagome was quietly talking to Inu-Yasha and just as she came to stand next to them she couldn't help but overhear it.

"Feh. I'll make sure the bozo won't peek, " Inu-Yasha exclaimed while crossing his arms and glaring at Miroku's back. "You better hurry up though...it sounds like he's already in the middle of the story."

"Thanks, Inu-Yasha!" Kagome whispered quietly before quickly standing on her tiptoes and planting a kiss directly on the stunned hanyou's cheek.

Sango giggled quietly at Inu-Yasha's wide-eyed expression as she followed Kagome out of the clearing, "Kagome...you should have seen his face when you kissed him."

"Oh, I don't know...I think it should be matching the color of his houri by now," Kagome replied, mischievously. Glancing over her shoulder, the Miko continued, "After all, I think Inu-Yasha's kind of cute when he has that stunned and embarrassed expression on his face...besides, he'll definitely try harder to keep Miroku away while we take our baths."

Sango stared, stunned at her friends logic before breaking out into peals of laughter. When she calmed down enough, Sango grinned and jabbed her elbow lightly into Kagome's side, wagging her eyebrows up and down she commented, "Kagome-chan, you really know how to handle him don't you. You've got him so flustered that he'd do anything to get another kiss from you."

Surprised and embarrassed at Sango's comments, Kagome blushed and squeaked,"Sango, it's not like that!"

"Oh, yes it is! You're in love with Inu-Yasha, Kagome," Sango replied, seriously. Throwing an arm around the Miko's shoulder, Sango grinned at her and teased, "It's just a matter of time before you become mates, besides, Shippo is already your pup."

Kagome stopped walking, stunned at her friends comments; while Sango walked passed her and thought, "_Is she kidding me! Does she mean that by youkai standards, Shippo is already considered my son!...It could be...I guess she's right and I do consider him to be my son anyway.!" _Shaking her head, Kagome glanced upwards to see Sango just up ahead. Kagome could just barely hear her singing, "_Kagome and Inu-Yasha sitting in a tree..."_ and blushing furiously, she chased after her while yelling, "Sango! But, Sango continued singing as she dodged Kagome's attempts to catch her. Soon the both of them arrived at the hot spring and proceeded to take a quick bath.

* * *

Miroku finished telling a story about a demon prince and a damsel in distress, glancing around the clearing, he noticed that both Sango and Kagome had disappeared. Frowning, Miroku turned towards the hanyou and asked, "Inu-Yasha, do you know where Kagome-sama and Sango-chan have gone off too?" 

"Yep, but you're staying here to watch the pups," Inu-Yahsa replied, glaring pointedly at the hoshi.

Miroku wondered what those words meant when it suddenly hit him, _"They must be bathing. I'll just have to find a way to sneak around Inu-Yasha so I can get a peek at them while their naked, but...Inu-Yasha will be a problem...hmmm..." _Suddenly, the monk thought of a plan and turned around, he gestured for Shippo and Rin to come closer. When they were close enough, he whispered, "Shippo-chan, how would you and Rin like some of my chocolate stash that Kagome-sama gave me?"

Shippo's eyes widened considerably as he thought about that particular treat. He had been craving more of it since he'd made a pig of himself the first day that Kagome had brought it from her time and eaten it all. Biting his lip, he nodded and replied, "Yeah!"

Rin blinked in confusion before asking, "Cho-co-late? What is that?"

Shippo glanced at his new friend and tried to explain, "It's the most yummy desert that Kagome gave me. I finished my stash the same day she brought it. Trust me, you'll love it!" Turning back towards Miroku, Shippo asked, " But what do we have to do?"

"I'm glad you asked," Miroku replied before launching into a detailed explanation. "...you see, that's all. You just need to try to get Inu-Yasha to answer some question, but if that doesn't work, make him chase you around for a bit."

"Ok, you've got a deal, now hand over the chocolate and we'll do it," Shippo replied, hands outstretched to receive the treat. Miroku ginned and quickly handed them half of his stash.

Rin nodded in agreement, but decided to try her own tactics before standing and making her way over towards Inu-Yasha with Shippo trailing next to her to listen in. When she stood directly below the tree that the hanyou was currently resting in, she glanced upwards and employed the puppy eyed expression of innocence."Inu-Yasha, can you tell Rin what to do when a snake youkai tries to attack Rin?"

"Feh! Why do I have to..." he started to reply, but one look at her expression and his heart melted. Jumping down, he crouched down to her level and explained in detail what the little pup should do to kill the snake or escape. While Inu-Yasha was distracted, Miroku took his chance and disappeared into the forest in pursuit of the girls.

* * *

Miroku walked through the forest until he heard the girls talking; crouching down, he quietly made his way towards the hot spring and hid behind a bush. Quietly, he moved the branches to get a clear view, but he was greatly disappointed when he saw that both Kagome and Sango were gone. "Huh? Where did they go?" he thought before sensing a presence behind him. Slowly, he moved his head around to glance behind him and saw a pissed off Sango holding her Hirrakkastsu in a tight grip, ready to pound him. Gulping, Miroku backed away only to come up short when he bumped into another obstacle. Turning around, he saw the twitching eyebrow of an angry Kagome. "Um...this is not what it looks like," Miroku tried to excuse himself from receiving the beating that he knew was coming, but unfortunately for him, bother girls didn't buy it. 

"MIROKU...YOU HENTAI!" Both Kagome and Sango yelled before using their fists, feet and the bone boomerang to beat him unconscious.

* * *

Inu-Yasha's ears suddenly perked up as he heard the sound of footsteps in the grass. Sniffing the air, he detected his brothers scent in the air just before Sesshomaru entered the clearing followed by Jaken. "What took ya so long to get him?" he asked. 

"I do not have to answer to you, but if you must know, Jaken was not where I left him when I followed Rin here," Sesshomaru replied.

"Feh," Inu-Yasha muttered and was about to comment when twin screams, "HENTAI!" echoed through the forest, followed by the sound of running reached their ears.

"What is going on?" Sesshomaru inquired, curiously.

"Feh! Miroku's a pervert and he's at it again," Inu-Yasha replied.

Quirking a brow, Sesshomaru cocked his head and commented, "Ah, I see, so he's getting beaten up by the females."

Inu-Yasha grinned wickedly and nodded, "Yep, and he deserves it!"

Nodding, Sesshomaru glanced towards the forest and replied, "On this subject, this Sesshomaru agrees with you."

* * *

AN: "Well, that took me a while to finish this chapter. I hope you like it. Let me know what you think." 


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Several minutes of screaming and crashing noises echoed throughout the forest before the sound of pounding feet on the earth reached their ears. Suddenly a purple blur dashed right past both demon brothers and headed straight for the tallest tree in the clearing. Sesshomaru blinked slowly, he had never thought that a human could move that fast before, but the monk had just proven him wrong that humans could move fast when sufficiently motivated. Turning towards his brother, Sesshomaru inquired curiously, "Why is he climbing the tree?"

Inu-Yasha smirked and replied, "You'll see in just a minute...just watch, this is going to be good. Man, I wish I had some of that pop-stuff that Kagome brought." With those last few words, Inu-Yasha turned his attention in the direction that the monk had come from and waited.

Curiosity getting the better of him, Sesshomaru cocked his head and murmured, "Pop-stuff? What is pop-stuff and why are you watching the forest and not the monk..." Deciding to test a hunch, Sesshomaru sniffed the air and immediately detected the scent of two angry females, "Oh. Never mind. This Sesshomaru understands." Turning towards his brother, the western lord continued, "What this Sesshomaru does not understand is why he does it if he keeps getting beat up by the females? All youkai know not to make the females angry or they will kill them."

Grumbling at his older brother's lack of knowledge in human females, not that he was an expert on them either, Inu-Yasha decided to explain, "That pop-stuff is something to eat and it's good, but it gets stuck in your fangs."

Sesshomaru nodded in understanding and muttered a reply, "Hnn, Continue."

"It's like this...Miroku has a curse and part of it is to be a lecher, Kagome and Sango both know it and tolerate it up to a certain point. Besides, youkai females are much stronger than humans anyway and it's the reverse in humans because it's the male that's the strongest, but Kagome and Sango are different from most human females since they're very strong when pissed off." Glancing at his older brother, Inu-Yasha saw his nod of acknowledgment before relaxing and turning his attention back towards the forest where he now could hear growling noises and the stomping of angry feet heading their way, "Anyway, he's going to get it now, so I think we should sit back and watch the entertainment."

"Does this always happen?" Sesshomaru inquired with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes. It happens every time they take a bath," Inu-Yasha nodded while crossing his arms in front of his chest and leaning back against a tree trunk for a more comfortable position. Just as he was about to mention something to Sesshomaru, both girls came storming into the clearing with murderous expressions on their faces.

"WHERE IS HE!" both Kagome and Sango growled menacingly. Both of their eyes had taken on a reddish tint as they scanned the clearing for the perverted monk. Spotting Rin in the clearing watching them, Kagome and Sango called her over, "Rin! Come here. We'll show you the proper way of how to deal with perverts."

"Hai! Rin is coming!" the little demon pup replied as she scrambled her way over towards the females of the group.

Sesshomaru twitched as he readied himself to intervene, but froze instinctively as two sets of red eyes snapped in his direction. Somehow, the demon lord knew not to draw their attention. "Inu-Yasha, why are they like this?" he whispered.

Being extremely quiet, Inu-Yasha whispered under his breath so only Sesshomaru could hear him, "Don't move...if you move they'll turn their attention on you and you really don't want to be their target. I swear, they're like demon females on a rampage when they're this mad" Taking a tentative sniff to catch the scent of both girls, Inu-Yasha grimaced and replied quietly, "Shit! It's going to get messy."

"What are you talking about?" Sesshomaru inquired as his interest in seeing human blood being spilt, piqued.

"Because they're just about to start their heat cycle," Inu-Yasha explained. "I think you should let them teach Rin how to deal with a pervert, it'll be a good lessen."

Not knowing how to respond to the hanyou's comments and suggestion, Sesshomaru silently agreed with his brother and muttered,"Hn, This Sesshomaru thinks that it might be a good thing for Rin to learn." Sitting very still, he watched as all three girls stalked towards the tree where the monk had hidden himself and proceeded to glare up into the branches.

Sango glared and growled," Miroku! If you don't come down from there, I'll cut you down!" When she received no answer, Sango reached back and grasped her bone boomerang with one hand, crouched and then threw it into the branches literally cutting off the top of the tree.

"Ieeeeeeee!" Miroku screeched as he just missed being decapitated by the boomerang. "Hey! Watch where you're throwing...uh, oh!" The monk froze in mid sentence as his gaze met with the menacing glares of three females.

"Miroku! If you don't get down here and take your punishment like a man, I'll shoot you down!" Kagome growled as she picked-up her bow and strung an arrow to aim directly at the monks position.

Rin stood below the tree deeply puzzled by the events happening, but she decided to ask what she could do to help," Kagome-onechan? What should Rin do?"

Kagome smiled evilly and replied,"Rin, you will climb the tree and flush him out. If he refuses to move, you have my permission to toss him out of the tree."

"Hai! Rin understands!" the inu-pup replied as she scurried up the tree and proceeded to toss the monk to the ground.

Sesshomaru, Inu-Yasha, Shippou and Jaken watched as all three of the females in their group got the cornered monk down from the tree and proceeded to beat him to a bloody pulp. Each time the monk screamed, he hit a high note, all four male demons winced both in pain and sympathy since it was a place that all males dreaded being hit in. They pitied him and prayed that he could still have pups in the future, but secretly they were enjoying the entertainment. By the time Kagome, Sango and Rin were done with the monk, he was so battered and broken that he'd need considerable medical care and rest in order to recover. Sesshomaru was suitably impressed at the level of violence that the human females were capable of, he thought,_"This Sesshomaru thinks that the monk had it coming and Rin did learn an good lesson." _ Seeing Rin trotting her way over towards him with a big smile on her face, Sesshomaru placed his good hand on top of her head and murmured, "You did well, Rin."

Beaming at her guardian, Rin yipped, "Arigoto, Sesshomaru-sama! Rin had fun!"

Nodding his head, Sesshomaru glanced at the injured human and sighed, "We will be further delayed until he recovers."

"Feh!" Inu-Yasha replied as he stood up and stretched."I wouldn't worry about it, the pervert will recover in about two hours, we'll just have to tie him to Kiara's back."

With those words said, Inu-Yasha grabbed the comatose monk by the back of his robes and slung him over the transformed fire cat's back. Turning around, Inu-Yasha gestured for his brother to lead the way and replied, "Well, I thought we were going to see Bouksano? Since I have no idea where he lives, you're leading."

"Hn," Sesshomaru replied as he walked off into the forest with the group following him. He knew that they would reach his fathers friend by nightfall if they hurried. Lengthening his stride, the demon lord barked out a command, "Do not fall behind because this Sesshomaru will not wait for you."

* * *

Night had fallen by the time the group had reached Bouksano's forest and everyone was extremely tired, but they refused to say anything since they were so close to their goal. Sesshomaru suddenly stopped walking in front of a massive tree and waited.

"Hey! Why'd you stop?" Inu-Yasha growled, crankily.

Sesshomaru turned and glared at his brother, but before he could form a retort the forest echoed with the deep voice of their father's old time friend,"_**Ah, Sesshomaru and Inu-Yasha. Welcome! What brings you here to my forest?"**_

Sesshomaru watched with great amusement as his half brother jumped in surprise; ears swiveling every which way as he tried to detect the origin of the voice. Suddenly, Inu-Yasha's jaw dropped as he saw a face appear in the bark of the tree they were standing in front of,"What?...Who the hell is that!"

"That, little brother, is Bouksano. Now, shut-up so this Sesshomaru can ask his question," the western lord replied, smugly. Turning around Sesshomaru inclined his head in a sign of respect and replied, "Bouksano-sama, this Sesshomaru would like to know about the Forbidden Youkai Forest and its effects on humans."

**_"I have heard that..."_** Bouksano's voice boomed throughout the forest. **_"..your ward, Rin, has been turned into a demon." _**The tree demon's eyes sought out the little inu-pup before returning his gaze to the Western lord.**_ "The Youkai Forest is ancient even to my knowledge and has been around for over ten thousand years. As you have heard from your father, it is a very dangerous place and no demon or human has managed to come out alive...until you."_**

"Yes. This Sesshomaru barely escaped with his life intact. Whatever it was that attacked this Sesshomaru..." he paused briefly, hesitant to reveal his weakness to his brother, but then forced himself to continue," I...admit to being afraid since it seemed determined to kill me and recapture Rin. This Sesshomaru was determined to never give up and to protect Rin with his life. I do not think it mattered to the creature if I was alive or dead," the western lord finished his reply, frowning. Glancing back towards Bouksano, Sesshomaru asked, "Do you know what it was and how Rin was turned into a demon?"

The tree demon frowned while trying to remember the stories told to him by demons long gone from this world. Inu-Yasha shifted impatiently and growled. Kagome glared at the hanyou and hissed, "Be quiet Inu-Yasha and let him think."

The hanyou crossed his arms over his chest, stuck his nose in the air and muttered a quiet, "Feh!"

**_"There have been stories from long, long ago. They were told to me by demons that were ancient when I was young to the world. The Youkai Forest was forbidden in that time as well since it was known to consume demons and human kind alike. It was known that if a human or demon entered the forest, they would never return because the Ashinka demon would devour them alive."_**

"Ashinka? What is that?" Shippou interrupted as his curiosity got the better of him.

Everyone in the group nodded in agreement and several murmurs confirmed their curiosity, while Miroku spoke up, "Yes. We would like to know, please tell us great Bouksano."

"Hn," Sesshomaru quietly murmured in agreement.

**_ "The Ashinka were said to be a white tree demon that could move from place to place in search of prey. They had tentacle like limbs tipped with poison barbs that could immobilize anything as well as eat through the prey's flesh if speared." _**Bouksano paused briefly and took in their rapt expression before continuing, "**_ The only reason this is known is because a hawk demon had watched it happen to a group of demons who had dared to ignore the warnings. Not much is known about the Ashinka, except they are a product of great evil and should be avoided at all costs."_**

"That is what attacked this Sesshomaru," the western lord whispered; his words caught the attention of Bouksano and the group. "It was a white tree...and yet when this Sesshomaru first came upon it...it seemed like a normal tree and smelled like a normal tree as well." He spun around and faced the setting sun before muttering, "This Sesshomaru was lured into a trap...one that I willingly entered into to save Rin."

Sango stepped forward as her curiosity got the better of her to ask, "Can you tell us what happened, Sesshomaru-sama?"

Sesshomaru frowned as he stared into the sky, he debated if it was worth telling them, but then decided that since they helped him, they deserved to know the full story. Turning, he faced the group, lifting his gaze, he stared up at the first stars in the sky and replied, "We were traveling north and I did not want to go through the human city, so to save time this Sesshomaru chose to travel through that forest. I did not believe fathers tales about the Forbidden Youkai forest and I foolishly entered since it would cut our travel time down by several weeks. From the moment we entered, something felt off and made my instincts go awry. It felt like we were being watched like a hunter stalking its prey." The western lord sighed quietly as he lowed his gaze to meet each individual's eyes in the group and growled, "In truth, we were being hunted every step of the way. I could hear the underbrush rustle softly and brushed it off as the wind. I could not smell anything that hinted of danger. There was no movement that I could see and when we stopped for Rin to eat, I foolishly let down my guard and then...it was too late...Rin had been taken."

**_"That is the way the Ashinka hunt. First they lull you into thinking there is nothing wrong and when your attention wanders...that is when they strike!" _**_Bouksano paused for effect while his words sunk in, before speaking once more, "_**_Sesshomaru, there is only one way that Rin could have been turned into a demon...did you give the human pup some of your blood before the Ashinka captured her and encased her in its trunk?"_**

The western lord blinked once as Bouksano's words registered and replied, hesitantly, "Yes. This Sesshomaru gave Rin some of his blood to mark her as his and to protect her from other demons. It had several benefits for my ward as well." he paused before continuing, "After Rin consumed my blood, she became stronger and gained a greater sense of smell that helped her in determining what is safe to eat and what is poisonous."

The tree demon's branches dipped lower as Bouksano heaved a sigh and replied,**_"That is the reason why Rin is now and forever will remain a demon. When the Ashinka took her, it somehow triggered your blood to take over in order for it to digest her. Ashinka only eat demons and Rin at the time was not a demon, but she did have enough demon blood in her that it took little effort to transform her into one. The Ashinka like to devour their prey within a days time, so you were very lucky to have managed to rescue her in time._**" With those last words, the tree demon's face faded back into the trunk of the tree and disappeared.

Sesshomaru stood there, completely stunned and relieved at the same time by Bouksano's words. He had been worried that Rin would somehow revert back to being a human and then he'd end up alone again after she died. But, now, it felt like a great weight had been lifted off of his shoulders and he could set his sights on the future, his and Rin's future as mates. Inclining his head, Sesshomaru replied, "Thank you old friend. You have eased this Sesshomaru's mind." Turning around, the lord of the west began walking northward once more to continue his search for Naraku with Inu-Yasha and his group not far behind.

* * *

Deep within his fortress the hanyou Naraku watched the group with great interest. "Hmmm, so my enemies have decided to join forces? Well, then I will have to do something about it and take the rest of the jewel shards for my own. This information about the Ashinka is most helpful..." Turning his attention back towards the ghostly demon child, Naraku murmured," That's enough, Kanna." Raising his voice, Naraku called out for his other incarnation, "Kargura your are to keep an eye on them and when the opportunity strikes, seize the Miko and Sesshomaru's ward and bring them to me."

The wind demon bowed deeply and replied, "Yes, Naraku." Before standing and making her way towards the door, she was stopped, however, by the cold chilling voice of her master,"Kagura. If you fail me this time, then your life will be forfeit."

"I understand and I will not fail," Kagura replied quietly as she pulled a feather from her hear and in a sudden gust of wind, disappeared from sight. The only thing that followed the wind demon was the sound of her masters laughter as it rang over the moutaintops.

"KUKUKUKUKU!"

* * *

AN: "Thank you for reviewing! Wow Almost 100 reviews in such a short time! I'm glad you're enjoying the story. As you can see or read, the scene is now set and ready for Naraku to make his move...what do you think will happen next? I'm open for suggestions..."

Sincerely,

D-Chan3


	10. Chapter 9

AN: First I'd like to thank all of you who have waited so long for this chapter. I admit to having a bit of writers block as well as having real life interfere with my writing. Recently, I've had to do a lot of home improvement jobs for my parents as well as get settled into my full time-year round-job and deal with a real jerk who didn't know what he was doing. Thankfully, my boss fired him and the person who originally hired me, came back. That was a nightmare in itself because I had to take over the jerks responsibilities as well as handle my own. Anyway, enough about that.

Now to those of you who complained about me having Sesshomaru refer to himself as 'This Sesshomaru' all the time. Here's your answer as to why I have him do this: He is a lord and he is full of self importance. He believes that everyone is below him...

Now onto another subject...Has anyone noticed that all of the good stories have been disappearing off of I have and it's frustrating because I can't find them. is ok, but it takes you forever to find what you're looking for since their search engine sucks. Are there any other places that archive Inu-Yasha stories?

Thanks so much mina!

* * *

Chapter 9.

Kagome groaned as her back and legs protested the weight of her backpack. They had been traveling for several days since their talk with Bouksano and Sesshomaru had spoken little since that time. Kagome often wondered about Inu-Yasha's older brother and what it was that made him tick. In the time that she'd spent in his company, she had discovered that he was a demon with a great sense of honor. He had a way of thinking that was so complex that it boggled her very mind. Kagome remembered what Bouksano had said about Rin and thought,_"Maybe fate has played a role in this, maybe not, but one thing's for sure...I'm glad that it's turned out this way for Rin. Now, Sesshomaru won't be alone..., but I often wonder what the future will be like for Inu-Yasha and I." _

Kagome glanced towards her hanyou friend admiring his features. She noticed that he held himself; with such great confidence that it was like nothing could stand in his way. Deciding to be the first one to break the silence, Kagome spoke up, "Inu-Yasha?"

"Yea, what is it, Kagome?" he replied without turning around.

"I think we should stop walking and find a good place to camp for the night," Kagome replied while eyeing Rin and Shippo; they looked dead tired and ready to fall at any moment.

"Yes. I would like to rest and get something to eat," Miroku interjected while rubbing his grumbling stomach.

Yea, Kagome's got a great idea. If we don't get some rest soon, we'll be of no use tomorrow if we collapse from exhaustion," Sango replied; putting down her bone boomerang, she yawned, then stretched to relieve the tension in her back.

"No!" The hanyou objected heatedly before continuing, "We've got plenty of time left!" Crossing his arms, Inu-Yasha continued, "We'll travel a few more hours before finding a suitable camp for the night."

"Grrrr! Inu-Yasha! the children, Sango, Miroku and I are tired...we need to rest!" Kagome growled, angrily, eyebrow twitching sporadically.

Sesshomaru glanced towards Inu-Yasha from the corner of his right eye before looking over his shoulder to see the miko's angry face. _"Stupid hanyou. Now you've made your mate angry,"_ he thought, frowning. Taking note of the miko's expressive face, he decided that it would be a good idea to move away from his brother, quickly. He stepped away from Inu-Yasha and interjected, "Inu-Yasha, I think it would be a good idea to apologize to your mate."

"What the hell are you talking about!"Inu-Yasha yelled, blushing furiously. "That bitch is not..." he started to reply but was quickly interrupted by a growling noise coming from Kagome.

Sesshomaru raised a brow, impressed by her ability to sound dog-like and thought, _"Must be because she's been around the hanyou long enough."_

"Inu-Yasha!" Kagome growled, furious at him for calling her a bitch.

Gulping, Inu-Yasha slowly turned around and blanched at the sight of her angry face, "Um...K..Kagome...I um..." he tried to apologize. He knew how much she hated being called a bitch, but he couldn't understand why she insisted that he not call her that. Inu-Yasha knew that in youkai terms if you called a female a bitch, it was the highest form of a complement you could give. He didn't get to far in his explanation when Kagome yelled,**"SSSIIITTT!"**

Sesshomaru smirked as his brother was slammed to the ground and whispering quietly he replied, "Inu-Yasha, you should have listened to your mate. Wasn't it you who warned me that she was about to go into heat?"

"_Fuck! I forgot about it,"_ Inu-Yasha thought before cursing out loud,"God damnit! I really hate it when she wins all of our arguments by sitting me!"

Sesshomaru smirked and replied, "You forgot, didn't you."

"Shut up!" Inu-Yasha growled from the six foot deep crater he was currently residing in.

"Hn, I see I was right, " Sesshomaru replied, laughing inwardly at his brothers predicament.

Growling angrily, Inu-Yasha replied heatedly, "If you really want to know...I was trying to figure out why she doesn't like being called a bitch."

Cocking his head in puzzlement, Sesshomaru stared down at his younger brother and asked, "Have you tried asking her the reason why she doesn't like being complimented?"

"I've tried, but every time I say the word bitch, she sits me!" the hanyou growled, jumping out of the hole he had made when the prayer beads had activated. "Temperamental bitch," Inu-Yasha grumbled as he jumped onto a branch in the nearest tree.

"It must be because she's a human and might take offense at being called that," Sesshomaru replied, thoughtfully.

"Feh!" Inu-Yasha growled before glancing towards Kagome and his friends. _"Maybe Sesshomaru's right about that, but there's no way I'm going to admit it," he thought to himself._

Sesshomaru turned around and glanced upwards to watch the sun as it dipped lower in the western sky. Sighing quietly, he glanced at the surrounding forest while thinking about his conversation with Inu-Yasha's mate,_" I suppose I should explain to my brother why I did what I did when father died, but I'm sure he'll take it the wrong way."_ Glancing towards the tree tops, he watched as his brother jumped from branch to branch; inwardly, Sesshomaru admired his brothers freedom from the responsibility of taking care of a huge estate. While he, was trapped by the conventions and trappings of being the Lord of the Western Lands. Shaking his head imperceptibly, Sesshomaru called his brother's name, "Inu-Yasha."

Inu-Yasha was about to jump to another branch when he heard Sesshomaru call him and thought,_ "I wonder what he wants?"_ Crouching down, he pushed aside some small branches that were obscuring his vision and growled, "What!"

Sesshomaru rolled his eyes in exasperation before turning his head to look up at his brother and replied," We have to talk, but away from prying eyes and ears." Sesshomaru calmly waited for the hanyou to answer. He half expected to be rebuffed, but to his surprise, Inu-Yasha nodded without a word and called out to his companions, "Kagome, you guys set up camp...Sesshomaru and I have to discuss something."

Inu-Yasha followed Sesshomaru deeper into the forest, but he kept a safe distance in case his brother decided that it was a good time to attack him. He was wary of his brothers motives, but at the same time, curiosity ruled his heart._ "I wonder what he want's to talk to me about? It better not be about taking the Tetsaiga again or I'll cut off his other arm if he tries,"_ the hanyou thought as he watched Sesshomaru pause in a clearing a good hundred yards away from camp.

"Inu-Yasha, I'm sure you are wondering why I asked to speak with you?" Sesshomaru questioned his younger brother while facing the surrounding forest.

"Yeah, Why the hell did you want to talk to me and what the fuck is it about!" Inu-Yasha growled while gripping the hilt of Tetsaiga.

"This Sesshomaru is only going to explain this once and I will not repeat myself," the full blooded dog demon said as he turned to face his younger brother. "In the past I have attacked you with the pretense of gaining the Tetsaiga, but in reality, I was only following fathers orders to make you stronger...however, I regret my past actions with your mother when you were younger.

**"YOU REGRET IT!...MY MOTHER DIED A YEAR AFTER YOU CHASED US OUT!"** Inu-Yasha yelled angrily, teeth bared in a snarl. "Why!...Why did you force us out of our home!...I was only a pup!" Inu-Yasha growled; old pain laced through his voice.

"You and your mother would have died the day after father died!" Sesshomaru growled, eyes flashing red and anger evident in his voice. "I forced you out of the castle to save both of your lives!"

"What did father say to you when he died!" Inu-Yasha shouted; he was angry as well as hurt at his brothers actions towards him and his mother. But, he wanted to understand his brothers actions and reasoning, so he calmly folded his arms across his chest and inquired,"And what do you mean by mother and I dying the next day?"

You needed to get stronger and to be able to protect yourself," Sesshomaru calmly replied. "If you had stayed in the castle, you might have been killed by those in our clan that thought you weak. Your mother was just another human to be killed. They didn't care that she was mated to father, they wanted her dead."

"Feh!" Inu-Yasha grunted in disbelief before shouting,"You were strong back then...you could have taken care of them!"

"I could have, but I couldn't do so because I had just taken over the Western Lands and every demon around for miles came looking to take over our home!" Sesshomaru punctuated his reply by growling loudly. He could feel himself losing control over his hard won emotional mask. It was like the hanyou knew which buttons to push to make him angry.

Inu-Yasha took a step back when he noticed that his brother was barely hanging onto the control over his emotions. Inu-Yasha watched as his brother struggled to contain himself for a few moments before readying his claws just in case Sesshomaru transformed. "You better not change or I'll take off your other arm!" Inu-Yasha growled in warning.

Gaining a semblance of control, Sesshomaru growled, "Baka! I couldn't split my attention by trying to defend the Western Lands and protecting you at the same time...to do so would have meant all of our deaths."

"Feh! Why should I believe you after all of the times you've tried to kill me," the hanyou grunted while turning his head and pointing his nose in the air.

"You will believe what you wish to, Inu..." Sesshomaru started to say, but was suddenly interrupted when several screams rent the air. One of those screams he recognized as his companions; whirling, Sesshomaru yelled, "Rin!" before running back towards camp.

Inu-Yasha also heard the screams and dashed off after his brother with only one thought going through his mind, "Oh Kami...KAGOME!

To Be Continued:


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Kagome sighed as she watched the two brothers depart, she was a bit worried about Inu-Yasha and silently prayed that he could keep his temper in check,_ "I wonder what Sesshomaru wants to talk to Inu-Yasha about. I hope he's decided to stop trying to kill him and take Tetsaiga. Maybe he wants to apologize, but if Inu-Yasha can't keep his mouth shut long enough, then Sesshomaru is going to kill him." _Suddenly, she started as a hand landed on her shoulder, "Eeeeee!" Glancing behind herself, Kagome noticed that it was Sango who had startled her,"Oh, Sango, it's just you," Kagome placed a hand over her racing heart to calm her nerves and continued, "Please, don't startle me like that."

"Gomen Kagome, I didn't mean to scare you. I was wondering what you were doing just standing there?" Sango smiled, apologetically before continuing,"I'm hungry and we've been traveling all day...do you have anything eat?" Sango asked; dropping an armload of firewood on the ground.

"Gomen Sango, but no...we ran out of food last night." Kagome shrugged. Frowning, she worried about what they could eat before an idea surfaced and replied, "I think I might have some herbs that would make a great stew. We could use them if you're willing to hunt for deer."

Miroku walked over towards the girls and couldn't help but overhear their conversation, "I think it would be a nice change to have venison stew for dinner, but maybe we should wait until Inu-Yasha and Sesshomaru come back."

Sango grinned at the monks words and replied, "Yeah, if they were the one's to hunt, we'd be eating in no time." Noticing Kagome's raised brow, Sango went on to explain herself, "Sorry, Kagome, but I don't think Kiara's up to it. She's out cold and too exhausted from carrying five of us on her back today...and I'm so tired, I don't think I can get up now."

Just as Kagome was about to reply, Rin and Shippo walked over. Rin plopped down on the ground, clutching her grumbling stomach and whined, "Kagome-neechan, Rin is hungry. Do you have anything to eat for Rin?"

Smiling at the little girl turned demon, Kagome bent down and replied, "I'm sorry, Rin...but we ran out of food last night. We were thinking about having venison for dinner...I'm out of arrows, so we need to wait for Sesshomaru and Inu-Yasha to get back."

Rin frowned once more as her stomach gave another loud protest and replied, "Can Rin help neechan hunt?"

Jumping onto Kagome's shoulder, the fix kit clutched a lock of her hair in his tiny fist and smiled excitedly, "I can help too!" Shippo exclaimed.

"That a great idea! We can use their sense of smell to locate a deer."Miroku said enthusiastically. Moving closer to the girls the monk bent down to Rin's level and inquired, "But has Sesshomaru ever taught you how to hunt?"

Shaking her head, negatively, Rin was about to reply, but stopped suddenly when a strange scent reached her nose. Frowning, she sniffed the air a few times to make sure it wasn't her imagination and said, "Rin smells something, but Rin doesn't know what it is."

Suddenly, the area around the group turned dark as night as the sun was blocked out. Kagome and the rest of the group glanced upwards to see what the cause was. "Oh my god!" Kagome gasped in shock.

"That's the biggest demon I've ever seen!" Sango exclaimed while eyeing its massive body.

"I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but...it's heading straight towards us," Miroku commented as he prepared himself to make a break for it.

Shippo's eyes widened to the point that his eyeballs almost fell out of their sockets and then screamed, "RUN FOR IT!"

Rin gasped at the horrifying sight heading straight towards them. She knew that she couldn't fight in her demon form. She was only a pup and still had her milk teeth, which would be of little use against the demon heading her way. Shivering in fright, she instinctively did the only thing that could possibly save their lives, she screamed for her lord,"SESSHOMARU-SAMAAAAAAAA!"

* * *

When he had first heard the scream echo through the forest, his heart had stopped beating for a split second before instinct took over. Now as his feet pounded the ground, Sesshomaru could feel his demon nature struggling for dominance while he ran as if he were pursued by an army. The wind whipped violently through his hair as he ran through the forest, desperate to reach camp and save his Rin. _"I will not fail!"_ he thought as he jumped over a downed tree. _"Rin is the only white Inu Youkai female to appear since my mothers time. I will not lose her!"_ Sesshomaru focused all of his senses towards Rin's general direction. He reasoned that the wind had been blowing in the opposite direction so that was why he hadn't smelled the demons. A voice suddenly brought him out of his musings.

"Oi, Sesshomaru!" Inu-Yasha yelled as he came abreast of his older half brother.

Still running at a furious pace Sesshomaru snarled,"What!", completely agitated at the thought that his Rin was in danger.

"What type of demon is it?" Inu-Yasha inquired while managing to keep pace with Sesshomaru as he ran. Glancing towards the older demon, he noticed that Sesshomaru's normally blank mask had slipped. Inu-Yasha knew that, that was a bad sign and became worried himself. "What's going on? I can't smell anything yet" Getting frustrated at his brothers lack of response, Inu-Yasha yelled, "Come on you ass! Tell me! What type of demon is it!"

Growling at his brothers stupidity, Sesshomaru sped up, dodging boulders and standing trees before exclaiming,"Idiot! Can't you smell Naraku's scent!"

Inu-Yasha took another deep breath and finally caught the scent, "Fuck!" he cursed. Detecting a strange odor, he frowned before taking another sniff to confirm what his nose was telling him, he snorted to clear his sinuses and growled, "What the hell is that smell!"

Sesshomaru glanced at Inu-Yasha briefly, before taking a tentative sniff and then suddenly cursed, "Shit!" He dodged a low lying branch and continued running while calling over his shoulder, " Inu-Yasha, prepare yourself. This battle that will not be an easy one."

"What the fuck are talking about?" Inu-Yasha panted as he dodged over a boulder in his path.

"Shut up and run faster!" Sesshomaru growled, annoyed at his brothers weaker senses. Silently he cursed his fathers profidity and wished that his brother had been born a full demon.

"Fuck off!" Inu-Yasha yelled, rudely; putting on an extra burst of speed to catch up to Sesshomaru, who was gaining ground as he outdistanced him. "I'm running as at top speed, damnit! If I was a full demon...then I'd be able to keep up with you! That's why I'm after the Shikon No Tama in the first place!"

Sesshomaru mentally rolled his eyes at his brother's stupidity and growled, "That bauble is only for weak fools and nothing but trouble comes of it. It is foolish to even covet it."

"Grrrrr, " the younger demon growled in annoyance while he continued to follow his brother through the forest to reach his pack. "I have no intention of swallowing it! I want to make a wish on it...,but I'm not sure as to how I should word my wish yet!"

"Stop your whining and run, baka!" Sesshomaru growled while make a halfhearted swipe at his brothers head with the palm of his hand, careful that his claws didn't injure his little brother; after all, Inu-Yasha might be of some use in the upcoming fight.

Not pausing for a minute, Inu-Yasha ducked and continued running and snarled, "I'm not whining, you ass!"

"Hnn," the western lord replied, non-communicatively. Completely ignoring his brothers protest, Sesshomaru focused his attention towards the clearing and ran as fast as his legs would carry him; all thoughts focused on saving his Rin.

* * *

The wind blew furiously as a figure raced towards her destination. Glancing over her shoulder, Kagura watched as her companion kept pace with her and thought, "_I wonder why my master has sent him with me. I could have handled them by myself!" _her thoughts turned inwards, focusing on her conversation with her master before leaving the castle.

-Flashback-

In a dark shadowy corner a sinister figure leaned against a windowsill, staring out at the moon. "Kagura," the voice echoed through the room towards the figure below the dais.

"Yes, My lord?" the wind witch replied, paused in her journey out the door and turning around, she bowed low, eyes focused on the ground.

"Take Draku and use him to get rid of those trouble makers." The half demon known as Naraku gestured towards the courtyard and continued, "I've changed my mind on capturing them. It would be best if they were eliminated...then I can retrieve the jewel shards with no one to oppose me."

"But...my lord, what about Sesshomaru?" Kagura asked, raising her head a little to peer through the bamboo screen towards her master. "He'll be a problem...how will I manage that?"

Naraku laughed quietly, before replying, "At the moment he and the hanyou have left their friends alone. If you strike now..."

Kagura grinned evilly while replying, "My master is very clever. I will go now and do as you wish." With those words said, the demon known as Kagura, departed.

Naraku watched her go, eyes narrowed while he whispered, "You had better not fail me or you will pay dearly, Kagura."

-End Flashback-

Turning her attention towards the ground, Kagura searched the forest for any sign of Inu-Yasha and his brothers party. Spotting them in the distance, she laughed quietly to herself and thought, "_Naraku, I follow your orders because you hold my heart and I have no choice...but, I am the wind and I will be free one day!_" With those thoughts in her mind, Kagura pointed at the campsite and called her companions name, "Draku!"

A large snake like head swiveled towards her and growled quietly, "What is it you want, witch!"

"Look, we've found them and must hurry before Sesshomaru returns!" Kagura opened her fan in preparation as the huge beast glanced downward towards the campsite and rumbled, "Then we must do as the master commands," before both of them surged forward at an impossible speed towards an unsuspecting Kagome and friends.

* * *

Glancing around, he took note of his companions facial expressions and quickly noticed the looks of complete and utter panic on their faces. Making a split second decision, he reached for the prayer beads on his right hand and yelled, "Brace yourselves! I'm going to use my Kazana!"

Hearing the the ominous sound of buzzing, Sango whirled around from the monstrous sight before them, and gasped, "Hoshi-sama! Don't!..Naraku's bees!

"Shit!" he cursed as he heard the ominous sound of buzzing and silently, he began praying to Buddha while continuing to remove the beads. Giving Sango one last glance, Miroku let all of his feelings show in that one glance before whirling back towards the threat and yelled, "I have too! It's the only way to save our lives!"

"Shippo! Rin! Get behind me!" The Kagome yelled while readying herself for the upcoming battle; stringing her bow, she gathered up what remaining energy she had and forced it into an energy arrow, then she braced herself for the hoard of demons heading their way. Hearing the monk's decision, Kagome glanced towards him and almost cried when she noticed the look in his eyes, but she also knew that he was willing to sacrifice his life for his friends and whispered, "Miroku."

"Miroku, no you'll die," Shippo whimpered quietly, dropping to the ground, he unconsciously grasped onto Kagome's leg, seeking assurance and protection from his surragant mother. The monk was part of their pack and to Shippo, he had become like an uncle to him.

Sango gasped as she saw the multitude of emotions directed towards her, but most of all, she recognized it for what it really was. Miroku, she noted, really loved her...and if she admitted it to herself, she returned it. Jaw dropping, she thought with dawning wonder, _"Maybe that's why he never asked me to bear his child!" _

Giving Sango one last glance, Miroku smiled wistfully and whispered, "I love you, Sango." Then he turned and faced the oncoming horde, dropped the beads and opened the Kazana so that the hurricane force winds sucked in everything in its path.

Snapping out of her stupor at those softly spoken words, Sango reached towards the monk in a desperate bid to stop him and screamed, "Miroku, nooooo!" But, she knew it was too late as soon as she saw the beads fall to the ground. Sobbing, she whirled away from him; gasping hirakkotsu firmly in hand, Sango focused on the battle to come and whispered, "I love you too, Ho..no, Miroku...and I will avenge your death!" With those whispered words, Sango threw the bone boomerang; no one noticed the lone tear that streaked down her face to land on the ground with a soft plopping sound. All of them were too focused on the demons as they were meters away...and then, they had arrived and all hell broke lose!

* * *

The sight that met both Sesshomaru and Inu-Yasha's eyes as the clearing came into view, was a scene of utter chaos. There were demons lying on the ground, dead and dying; all sorts of demons in the air and attacking the group. Miroku and the rest of the group were fatally wounded, bleeding heavily from many gashes, but they kept fighting until one by one, they fell to the ground, no longer able to fight for their lives. Not wasting any time, Inu-Yasha and Sesshomaru rushed into battle. Several minutes passed before they noticed a large shadow over to the right of the battlefield and glanced in its direction. Inu-Yasha gasped in shocked surprise as he gazed at the demon before him; eyes widening in shocked surprise, the half demon unexpecditly mirrored his brothers thoughts when he exclaimed, "Holy Shit!"

Using claws and an energy whip, Sesshomaru and Inu-Yasha managed to finish off the lower demons before turning their attention towards the massive dragon demon. Its size easily dwarfed that of their father in his demon form; this in itself made Sesshomaru extremely wary and he knew that it would be a tough battle. Grasping Tokajin, he pulled it from its sheath and attacked. Inu-Yasha was not far behind with Tetsaiga as he sprang into battle after his brother. Sesshomaru managed to get in a few good hits before he was slammed painfully to the ground from a strike of the dragon's tail,"Ugh!" Gasping in pain, the older demon struggled to rise, but was suddenly knocked over by his brothers body slamming into him and sending both of them tumbling end over end.

When the world came into focus, Sesshomaru growled, "Get off me!"

"I"m trying you ass!" Inu-Yasha growled as he painfully got to his feet.

Glancing towards the dragon demon, Inu-Yasha could see it opening its mouth and the swirls of vapor gathering inside. Hefting his sword, Inu-Yasha gathered all of his youkai and yelled, "Wind Scar!"

The energy from the Wind Scar raced towards their opponent, just as the dragon exhaled, letting lose a cloud of poison gas directly at the Taiyoukai. Sesshomaru inhaled the poisonous vapor and coughing, he went down to one knee while desperately trying to cover his mouth and nose to prevent himself from being overcome by it. Most poisons didn't affect the youkai lord, but this one, for some strange reason, was affecting him, he could feel a strange bubbling in his chest as he breathed. Taking his sleeve away from his mouth and nose, Sesshomaru glanced at it and saw that it was spotted with blood. Suddenly, he coughed violently and covered his mouth in an automatic gesture. Taking his arm away, he could see that blood had splattered all over his sleeve and realized that the poison was literally eating away at his lungs. Raising his eyes from the sight, he called a warning to his brother, "Inu...poison...don't," but before he could utter another word, his eyes rolled up into his head as the poison finally overcame him and he hit the ground with a audible thump.

The warning came a bit late as the wind shifted, blowing the gas directly in Inu-Yasha's face. Hearing his brother hit the ground, In-Yasha whirled around, gasping and accidentally inhaling the gas. Coughing, the hanyou struggled to stay on his feet as he prepared one last attack. Lifting Tetsaiga, Inu-Yasha gathered as much of his remaining strength and release it towards and the dragon.

A moment before the attack hit, Kagura noticed and dodged it by using her feather to get out of the way. However, her companion was not so lucky. The attack hit and Draku roared loudly, the sound was so loud that it could rupture the eardrums of any youkai.

Covering his ears, Inu-Yasha screamed in pain,"Arrrrrggggghhhh!" before falling to the ground with a thump as the combination of poison and sound overwhelmed his senses.

Kagome noticed all of this through a hazy fog of pain and the encroaching darkness of death and whispered, "Please...please Kami...don't let them ...win..."

Kagura laughed evilly as she descended from her vantage point, "Well, well. It looks as if we've finally won."

"Yes, now lets finish them off!" Draku growled, stepping closer towards his prey. Suddenly, just as he was close enough to strike, the air started to shimmer and swirl as little dots of light began to gather. Then, they heard the sound of beating hearts that seemingly came from Sesshomaru Inu-Yasha's waists. Glancing towards the weapons, Kagura gasped as the Tensiga and Tetsaiga began to rise into the air, as if held by some invisible hand. Not wasting a moment to see what would happen next, Kagura and Draku loosed their attacks.

As their combined attacks headed towards the group, a ghostly figure dressed like a samurai warrior with silvery white hair, and indigo stripes decorating his cheek bones suddenly appeared, grasping both hilts in his ghostly fingers, he deflected the attack back towards Kagura and Draku. Kagura managed to dodge, but was struck by the tail end of the attack. But Draku, unfortunately, wasn't so lucky, as the attack hit him full force and obliterated him.

Satisfied that Sesshomaru and the rest of the group were dead. Kagura sneered at the white-hared demon spirit and decided to leave quickly before he killed her. "My mission is complete," Kagura whispered as she fled.

The ghostly figure watched as she departed before turning his attention towards the fallen miko and sighed, "We heard your plea and I came as fast as I could. The Kami have decreed that Naraku must not win, so they have allowed me to interfere and give you a gift." With those words, the demon known as Inu-Taisho, glanced towards the Shikon No Tama; the jewel rose slowly from its hiding place on Kagome's body and gently floated towards him, stopping directly in front of the spirit of Inu-Yasha and Sesshomaru's father. Smiling gently at his sons and their companions, Inu-Taisho crossed the swords so that the jewel hovered just inside the crook of the 'X' and then sent a powerful burst of energy through them and into the jewel of four souls.

Suddenly, the half of the jewel started spinning, faster and faster as it glowed brighter and brighter until the whole area was covered in a blinding pink light. In the midst of the light stood a gently smiling Inu-Taisho as he watched his sons and their friends start to gently float off of the ground. Pushing more power into the swords and ultimately into the jewel, Inu-Taisho focused his attention on the Jewel of four souls as it began to beat like a living heart. Satisfied that he had done all that was commanded of him, the spirit of Inu-Taisho smiled as the bodies of his sons and friends began to pulse in time with the jewel, each pulse becoming stronger and stronger, until with a bright flash of light, his mission was complete.

As the group gently floated to the ground and the light dimmed, Inu-Taisho checked them over and noted the changes in the humans."They," he mused, "are no longer human and it will be a big shock to them once they awake. But, it will be an even bigger surprise to the demon Naraku once he meets up with them." Watching the rising and falling of their chests as they breathed, Inu-Taisho made his way over towards his sons and paused briefly, to brush his claws over both of his their cheeks in a fatherly caress, and before his body began to completely fade back into the spirit world, he whispered "Good luck, my sons..." and then disappeared.

* * *

AN: "Well that's it for this chapter! I hope you like it...I know...another cliff hanger! ...So, how'd you like Inu-Taisho appearing? I got that idea from the third movie!

Now, I want to say thank you to everyone who've stuck to their guns and continued reading this story...even to those of you who've reviewed!

I also want to say that I'm going to take a slight break and work on Shadows of the past, my Kenshin story. I'll try and get another chapter of Youkai Forest out very soon...maybe by December or November, but don't worry, It might even be earlier. I see in a lot of the reviews that people are asking me to hurry and update soon...well, I'm writing as fast as I can. I do have responsibilities...like work, to deal with. (Grumble...grumble...work..takes up all my writing time...blah! hate it!..um..,but the money is good.)"


	12. Chapter 11

Chapter 11.

The first thing he became aware of was the excruciating pain in his lungs as well as how painful it was to breathe. He could hear his heartbeat pounding in his ears, which only magnified the pounding in his head. He remembered what had happened in those last few moments of battle, before he had blacked out from the lack of air. Cautiously, he took a tentative sniff and detected no signs of danger in the immediate area, so he tried opening his eyes and winced as they were hit with the blinding light of the noon day sun. Groaning, Sesshomaru quickly shut his eyes before trying a safer method; lifting one arm, he shielded his sight with his hand before opening them, cautiously. As his eyes adjusted to the light, he slowly removed his hand and blinked to clear the fuzziness and bring everything into focus. It was then, that the great lord of the Western Lands noticed that he was currently lying on his back and thought, _"I should not be in such a vulnerable position. I must get up and find Rin."_ Bracing himself with both of his arms, he slowly and painfully sat up. Feeling slightly dizzy, he braced himself with his left arm, while his right covered his eyes to block the image of the revolving trees and sky.

Slowly, and painfully, he rose to his feet and began looking for Rin. The world spun crazily, so he braced himself against a tree trunk and shook his head to clear it before glancing around the clearing. Absently he took note of his brother and his friends lying half hidden in the forest. Sniffing the air to locate Rin, he frowned when his nose detected the scent of dog demons,"That's odd," Sesshomaru frowned and then murmured, "There's not a hit of human scent anywhere, just the scent of dog demons...I can't even smell the scent of hanyou. Maybe my sense of smell was affected by the poison."

Suddenly, the sound of loud cursing echoed through the clearing as Inu-Yasha awoke, "Fucking Dragon demon! What the hell did it hit me with!" Inu-Yasha yelled as he sat up. Reaching for his head, his sleeves suddenly fell from his wrists, and as Inu-Yasha moved, his skull flared with pain,"Ow!"

"Shut up!" Sesshomaru growled angrily. He couldn't concentrate while Inu-Yasha was making all that noise. Glancing towards him, Sesshomaru's eyes widened in surprise as he got a good look at his brother. From his vantage point, he could see that Inu-Yasha appearance was different. Curiously, Sesshomaru took a tentative sniff of his brothers scent, but couldn't detect his scent because of the strong smell of that dragon demon. The only scent that Sesshomaru smelled was what he determined to be himself. Puzzled by his inability to detect his brothers scent, he glanced towards the hanyou and saw the markings on his wrist.

In a blink of an eye, Sesshomaru blurred and appeared kneeling next to Inu-Yasha and seized the hanyou's wrist in his claws, and yanking it towards himself, he growled,"How did this happen?"

Inu-Yasha winced at the tight grip Sesshomaru had on his wrist, but stared in amazement at the demon markings on his wrists. His eyes widened as he saw the same stripes like his brother had on his wrists, but Inu-Yasha noticed that his were a dark blue in color. Lifting his gaze back towards his brother, Inu-Yasha growled, "I don't know! The last thing I remember is breathing in that shit!" Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Inu-Yasha let his eyes wander towards the clawed hand gripping his wrist and exclaimed, "How the fuck did your arm grow back so quickly!"

Sesshomaru replied, frowning, " I have no idea, but I'm glad that it has...it will make dealing with Naraku, easier." Sesshomaru glanced behind Inu-Yasha when a flash of white caught his attention. "Inu...Yasha have you looked behind yourself?" he slowly inquired at the sight of something white lying on the ground behind his brother.

Inu-Yasha turned around and gasped, "What the fuck!" Then he grasped it and gave it a slight tug and winced as pain shot up his spine. As if struck by a sudden thought, Inu-Yasha's arms rose to the top of his head to see if his dog ears were still attached. Finding them in the same spot, he suddenly whined, "Oh great, now I look even more like a dog...now I have a tail to go with my ears!"

Sesshomaru smirked and replied, "Don't complain, now you're the spitting image of Uncle Haramu." He stood up and continued, "...and father liked to transform half way as well. He claimed that it attracted the ladies. Plus, you're no longer a hanyou, so this Sesshomaru thinks that this is an improvement. Your strength has now tripled, but you will need more training in order to learn to control yourself."

Whipping his head around to face his brother, Inu-Yasha growled angrily and replied,"I know how to fight! I don't need anymore training!"

Sesshomaru rolled his eyes while deciding to look for the rest of the group,"We will talk about this later, but now I think it would be a good idea to search for your friends."

Realizing that he had completely forgotten about them, Inu-Yasha jumped to his feet and yelled, "Kagome!" before dashing off in the direction he had last seen her; Sesshomaru followed at a much slower pace and wondered what other surprises they would encounter. He had almost reached the edge of the forest when he noticed that Inu-Yasha stood completely frozen, branches of a bush pushed aside and muttering, "Kagome...Sango... and Miroku? What the fuck happened to you!"

* * *

Pain, pain was a sensation that Sango was well acquainted with and right now, her body was practically raw with it. Her head throbbed with it while her guts churned with nausea. Sango wondered if it would be a good idea to even attempt to get up because right now, everything hurt. She winced at the loud call of a bird and idly cursed it for screaming in her ear, which as an end result, made her head throb even more. Coming to a sudden decision, she decided to just lye right were she was and hope that the pain would disappear before she even attempted to open her eyes.

* * *

Groaning, he slowly opened his eyes to the world around him, but then he winced and clamped his eyes shut as needles of pain shot through his eyes to spear his brain. _"Why do I always have to be the one to suffer?"_ he thought hazily as his skull throbbed with pain. Groaning, he absently wondered why the girls had decided to hit him again. He knew that he hadn't touched them this time, so why... 

Then, he remembered it, "The dragon demon!" he muttered, then he moaned in pain as his voice caused his head to give another painful throb. He remembered that it had managed to surprise them and that they had tried running from it at first, but as it gained upon them, they had no choice, but to turn and fight. He remembered that they fought desperately for their lives. In reality, he had known it was a futile battle. He knew that they would die. With both Inu-Yasha and Sesshomaru gone, the demon had picked just the right time to attack.

Miroku barely remembered removing the rosary that sealed Naraku's curse. After the first several dozen poison bees had been sucked into his Kazanaa, everything around him had become hazy; the poison had effected his sense of reason and fighting abilities. Frowning, he tried sorting the blurry images of his memories and thought, _"The last thing I remember is seeing two white blurs enter the clearing. That must have been Sesshomaru and Inu-Yasha." _

As he tried to roll into a sitting poison, he was struck by a stab of pain in his arm and head. Idly, he wondered if it was a good idea to try and get up. His musings were shattered by a sudden pain in his skull; the source of it came from Inu-Yasha as he yelled loud enough to break his eardrums. The sheer decibel level made Miroku long for the comforting blackness of unconsciousness. "Fuck!" he moaned while clutching his ears to ward off the thunderous noise. Miroku winced, _"Stupid Inu-Yasha! Can't he stop screaming? My head is killing me and I think I might have a concussion."_ he thought, silently cursing the hanyou's lack of consideration for the wounded. Cracking open an eyelid, Miroku glanced towards the source of his pain and literally growled, "Inu-Yasha!...do you think that for one moment you could have pity upon my poor pounding skull and shut up!"

The former hanyou turned around to face the source of the menacing growl and stared at the dog demon dressed in a monks robes and replied, "You know, for a human that just turned into a dog demon...that was a pretty good growl you did Miroku. You really sounded pissed off."

Miroku frowned as he gazed in puzzlement at his friend. Something about the hanyou looked different. It took a few moments for the changes to register in his mind, and when they did, he sat up quickly and stared. "What happened to you!" Miroku asked while gazing at Inu-Yasha's new tail, stripped wrists and face. He wondered what the hell had happened to make Inu-Yasha transform like that. It was then that his friends words registered, blinking, Miroku growled, "What the hell are you talking about...I'm not a dog demon! I'm human!"

Sesshomaru picked that exact moment to appear next to his brother and replied, "You were this morning, but now you're a dog demon. And," he pointed towards Miroku's left and continued, "So are your friends." With those words left handing in the air, the western lord turned in the direction of Rin's scent, "Excuse me, I must find, Rin." he muttered quietly as he walked out of the clearing and into another part of the forest.

Now completely afraid to look, Miroku slowly turned his head to see both Kagome and Sango sitting up and staring at each other in amazement. Somehow, during the brief conversation with Inu-Yasha and Sesshomaru, they had awoken. Inu-Yasha heard the sudden movement from the girls and rushed over towards Kagome's side, "Kagome! Are you all right?"

"Kiri" Kagome whispered while staring at Inu-Yasha, transfixed by the sight of his shimmering hair and the white fluffy tail currently resting on his shoulder. Blinking, she slowly reached out a clawed hand to run her fingers through it, then froze. Glancing at her hand, she then glanced back at Sango before asking quietly, "Inu-Yasha...why do Sango and I have claws?"

Gulping, the former hanyou wondered if it would be a good idea to look for a good spot to hide when he told her. But, glancing towards her pleading eyes, he felt his will crumble, ears flattening on top of his head, he sighed, speaking softly so as not to hurt her ears, he replied,"Kagome, you both have claws because you're no longer human...you're a dog demon now."

"Oh." Kagome replied; uncharacteristically subdued. Feeling suddenly light headed at the sudden knowledge that she was no longer human and able to see her family again, made her eyes rolled up into her head and she fainted dead away.

"Shit!" Inu-Yasha cursed, lunging to catch the now, demonized Kagome.

Inu-Yasha, what happened?" Miroku asked as he also tried to reach her in time before she hit the ground. But he was a second too late as Inu-Yasha managed to catch her.

"She fainted." Sango replied from her sitting position against a tree trunk. With Kilala nestled in her lap, Sango slowly ran her claws through the firecats fur and continued, "I'm not surprised about it either. If I had fought like she had, using up all of my miko powers and then finding out that I can no longer show my face in my time again, is ...well, shocking.

Inu-Yasha turned towards Sango, "Do you think she'll be, ok?"

"Kagome's going to be fine, right?" Shippo asked, worriedly. His eyes were wet with the beginnings of tears, but he managed to hold them back. He refused to cry in front of Inu-Yasha.

"Yeah. Kagome will wake up once the shock wears off," Sango replied, reassuringly. Glancing at her newly clawed hand, she continued, "Have you any idea about what happened to us?"

Carrying Kagome over towards a spot in the shade, he sat down with her on his lap and closing his eyes, the former hanyou prepared himself for a long wait and replied quietly, "No, but Sesshomaru might know, so we'll have to wait until he returns."

* * *

AN 

To ElliRenChanSan : Thanks! I'm glad you like my story! I hope you enjoyed this chapter because I enjoyed writing it.

To Cassie- Thanks for the encouragement! Now, if you're wondering what's going to happen to Rin...Well I'm not telling! You'll have to read the next chapter of my story, but I'll give you a hint...Sesshomaru's in for a big surprise!

Shiruba Karasu You don't like how Sesshomaru is speaking...Well, I'm going off of my references by using the Japanese version of the anime. Believe me, he does speak that way. Keep in mind he's a lord and back then they were full of themselves. They believed that they were more important than your average person. Plus, I think it was how Sesshomaru was raised. I"m sorry, but I'm going to keep him in character and make him continue speaking the way he is. I might tone it down though.

Remember, Inu-Yasha raised himself, so that is the reason why he's such a ruff and tumble kind of demon. He had to be in order to survive.

To the rest of my reviewers and anyone I forgot to mention Thanks!


	13. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

As the sky cleared and the strange tornadic winds died down, the local wildlife began to relax and broke out into song. A small black fox poked its head out from its den and sniffed the air cautiously; not finding any signs of danger it emerged into sight and began its search for food. It had not gone far when suddenly it froze as a noise attracted its attention, it backed up a step and sniffed the air before darting back into its den with a small yelp of alarm. Between one moment and the next a bloodied figure staggered unsteadily through the thick underbrush. Her clothing hung off of her frame by small threads, it was so badly damaged that she had to hold it in place with one hand to keep it from falling off as she ran; a look of terror graced her dirty face as she glanced over her shoulder for signs of her pursuer.

With each breath, her side ached; the result of being smashed against a tree trunk from the strong winds that the dragon demon had produced. The last thing she remembered was the battle between her lord and the huge demon. Rin whimpered as her head throbbed viscously; the result of a blow to the temple when she had struck the tree. Stopping briefly, she rested against a massive fallen log. The sheer size of it would be impressive if she had had time to stop and gawk at it. But being that she was being hunted, she couldn't afford to tarry long. Straightening, she whimpered again as a bolt of pain stabbed her between the eyes, making her vision fade to utter darkness.

Blinking rapidly, she tried to adjust her vision, but was unsuccessful in restoring her sight. Staggering, she slowly felt her way along the ground, arms outstretched towards the nearest tree on unsteady feet, bracing herself with a clawed hand, she steadied herself against another tree. Panting unsteadily, she rubbed at her eyes, hoping to clear her vision. It took a few moments before the haze disappeared and the world around her came into sight. As her eyes focused upon a large clawed hand, she stared at it wonderingly before she froze in shock. She had had no time to think when she had first awoken before she had been attacked by invisible blades of air. Instinct had ruled her and compelled her to flee and find her lord. Now that she had a brief moment of respite she whimpered as she took in the sight of her own clawed hand, "Sesshomaru-sama Rin must not be well because Rin is seeing things. But if Rin is well, then why is Rin's hand so big?"

Glancing down at herself, Rin blinked in shock at the sight of her own breasts. Raising her hand, she rubbed her eyes and then glanced at them again before a goofy smile made itself known, "Rin looks like big sister Kagome and Sango-sama!" Tilting her head to the side, she frowned before a thought struck her, "Rin grew up and now Sesshomaru-sama wont recognize his Rin!" she wailed quietly. Sniffling, the now adult-like Rin shuffled her way back towards the camp. She had not gone more than two steps when the scent of Naraku struck her like a slap in the face. Growling as her anger finally overtook her good sense, Rin took a threatening stance with claws raised and ready to strike, she called out, "Come out and stop hiding from Rin! This Rin is tired of being chased!"

"Hmm, So it seems that you're alone without Sesshomaru to protect you. I know who you are Rin, your scent betrays you. What I wonder is how you've somehow grown up. This is very strange that you have become an adult in just a few hours. I wonder what my master would say." Kagura replied as she stepped into the clearing; fan raised tapping gently against her chin.

"Kagura!" Rin growled as she took a step away from the demon. Rin knew that she was no match against her. She did not have any experience fighting against demons since her Sesshomaru had begun teaching her a few months ago. The only option she had, she mused, was to bluff her way out of it or to make a run for it.

However, the wind demon had other plans. Just before Rin could make a dash for the safety of her companions, the wind witch raised her fan and sent several blades of wind in her direction; cutting off all chances of her escape while she chuckled evilly and replied, "Of course. Did you think that I would go back to my master empty handed?"

"What are you talking about, witch?" Rin growled quietly as she slid one foot behind her and raised her hand, cracking her knuckles to let the poison flow in preparation for her attack.

"Bitch! Because of your precious lord and his bastard of a brother...I will be punished for my failure! But, if I manage to capture you and bring you to my master...Sesshomarou will have no choice but to give in to my master's wishes." Snapping her fan closed for a moment, the wind demon incarnation known as Kagura thought about how she had come upon Sesshomaru's ward. She had been traveling back towards her masters castle when the winds had shifted and brought the girls scent strait to her. Not wanting to go back empty handed, she had decided to capture the girl in hopes of appeasing her lords anger enough that she would not be punished.

Taking a threatening step closer, Rin raised her glowing hand in front of her and asked,"And what would that be?"

Smiling evilly, Kagura replied, "Why to see Inu-Yasha and his friends dead as well as to have complete possession of the Jewel of Four Souls." With those words hanging in the air, Kagura attacked.

The battle became fast and furious as the two female demons exchanged blows. Rin managed to score several minor hits on the wind witch, while Kagura managed to seriously wound the female dog demon to the point that the massive amount of blood loss began to take its toll. It was only a matter of time before only one was left standing. Gathering her remaining strength, Rin launched her final attack at her enemy, she watched as it connected and sent Kagura hurtling away at an alarming speed. Not waiting to see if the wind witch returned, Rin dashed off into the forest towards the familiar scent of her lord. She had not gone too far when suddenly, she collapsed, unconscious.

The group had been waiting for Kagome to awaken for over an hour now and at the moment, none of them had wanted to disturb her. The fact that she had been able to escape into the blissful state of unconsciousness made the rest of the humans turned demon, envious. Sango leaned against a tree while she idly stared at her clawed hands in wonder, flexing them and cracking her joints until Inu-Yasha's yelling broke the silence, "Oi! Will you stop doing that! You're giving me a fucking headache!"

"Inu-Yasha, you know that Sango-san is just as shocked as I am about our recent changes," Miroku pointed out while slipping on a pair of black hakama before reaching for the hem of his robe and lifting it over his head.

"Yeah, I know but all that noise is really giving me a fucking headache. Need I fucking remind you that I'm now a full demon. My hearing has improved drastically and it's as loud as thunder." Inu-Yasha replied; watching as Miroku absently held the piece of cloth up in front of his face; a deep frown furrowing his brows before he shrugged and then quickly raised one clawed hand. "Yes, it's quite obvious that you're a full demon, however, as Kagome-sama would say...those ears of yours make you look cute," Miroku replied teasingly.

Inu-Yasha's ears flattened at that comment, he glared at the youkai monk and growled, "I've decided to let that comment slide, for now...but one more word about my ears being cute from you and I'll beat the shit out of you!"

"Ok, ok. I promise that I won't say that again." Miroku replied and grinned, baring his fangs at his friend and then bent over his work while Inu-Yasha stared at his friend's new features. He couldn't help but blink at the extreme changes his friend had undergone, Miroku's hair was the most notable change. There was no way around not being able to notice it because it was shockingly white and lavender in color. While Sango's had pink highlights and Kagome's was the most startling of all. Her dark hair had light blue highlights and if he had to admit it. That made her features all the more breathtaking. Shifting his gaze between Kagome and Sango, then, back towards the monk, Inu-Yasha admitted that the one thing that made the youkai monk and his friends stand out the most were their demon markings and clothing. Sango's stripes were a shocking bright pink color. If he had to admit it, Inu-Yasha would say that it matched her exterminator outfit perfectly. Miroku's markings on the other hand were a bright purple and matched his robes.

"If you hadn't noticed Inu-Yasha, you're not the only one who's changed," Miroku murmured. "I mean look at me...I had a chance to look into one of those mirror devices that Kagome-sama has with her and it's strange for me to see myself with long white hair, purple stripes and purple eyes."

"Hoshi-sama?" Sango murmured, turning towards the monk hearing the silent despair hidden deep within the tone of his voice. She really wanted to comfort him, but didn't really want to get too close. She knew that if she did, he'd just grope her again. Lowering her eyes to hide her concern, she froze when the sight of his bared chest came into her view. Eyes widening at the sight of his smooth muscular torso, Sango felt her heart rate pick up as several wicked henti thoughts ran through her mind. At this very moment, she knew that if her friends were not with her at the moment, she would have tackled the hoshi to slake her rising lust for him and bedamed the consequences. Blinking quickly, she tried to reign in her clambering emotions while trying not to ravish at the half naked man in front of her. She really wanted to keep staring at his strong chest and wash board abs, but the presence of her friends and the rising change in her own scent caused her to avert her gaze. Not noticing the change in Sango's scent due to the change in wind direction, both Inu-Yasha and Miroku continued their conversation.

"What the hell are you doing?" Inu-Yasha growled as he watched Miroku carefully slice pieces of his robes off with painstaking precision.

"Hmmm," the former monk absently replied as he slashed one claw through the bottom half of the robe to shorten it. "Oh I'm trying to create a makeshift gi. I can't very well go around in monks robes now that I'm a demon. Besides, if I try to run, I'll probably trip."

"He's right about that, Inu-Yasha," Sango murmured as she stroked Kilala from head to tail, gently. The firecat enjoyed this attention from her once human master and really didn't care that Sango was now a demon. In fact, Kilala thought that this was a good thing since they could now be together for the rest of their natural lives. This thought wrung a delightful sounding , "Puuuuuurrrrrrrrrrrr," from the firecat as she arched her back in bliss.

Knowing the truth to his words, Sango and Inu-Yasha nodded in agreement. As Inu-Yasha opened his mouth to comment, he heard a moan coming from Kagome's direction, "Hold on a minute...I think Kagome's waking up," Inu-Yasha replied as he knelt down at her side and gently pushed a stray lock of hair away from her face and stared. If he hadn't have thought that Kagome was beautiful before, she now exceeded that beauty to otherworldly. Her dark hair shimmered with light blue highlights and her lips were a rich pink in color. On her cheeks, rested two pale blue stripes. As he stared, her eyes fluttered open and he noticed absently that her demon markings matched her eyes in color.

"Inu-Yasha?" Kagome murmured, puzzled as to why he was kneeling over her with a dazed expression on his face. "Why are you staring at me like that?"

Too deeply immersed in his musings about how beautiful Kagome had become, Inu-Yasha failed to hear her question and unconsciously whispered, "Keiri."

Kagome blushed at his words, he had never said that about her before. It was always _bitch, wench and stupid_...he never said anything remotely close to complimenting her before and it made her feel all warm and tingly inside. " Oh, Inu-Yasha..." Biting her lower lip, Kagome tried to contain her joy at his words, but in the end, they escaped their metaphysical leash and before Inu-Yasha knew what hit him, his arms were full as Kagome launched herself at him and kissed him directly on the lips.

As Sesshomaru walked through the forest in search of Rin, he hoped that she would be unhurt, and that he would find her quickly. He knew that an inu-youkai pup alone in the forest with no protection from their guardian would become easy prey for any passing youkai. _"And,"_ he mused, combined with the fact that there are only fifty white Inu-Youkai left, not including the recently turned humans; made his task doubly important. "She will be fine, but I must find her before another demon crosses her path and decides that she's its next meal," he murmured, quietly.

Glancing around, Sesshomaru searched the forest for any sign of his charge. Finding nothing, he sniffed the air for her scent, but he could find no traces of it. It was almost as if she had disappeared into thin air._ "Damn it! I refuse to call her name. She should know that this Sesshomaru is looking for her. The wind should make sure of that by carrying my scent to her,"_ he thought as he walked around a tree that stood in the midst of his path. As he continued through the forest, he searched for even the slightest trace of his charge's passing, a broken twig, an impression in the ground, anything that might signify her passing, but he could not detect even the most minute trace of her scent. This puzzled the youkai lord because before he had left the battlefield, he was able to smell her scent. Now, there was nothing. He refused to believe that she had vanished into thin air.

Frustrated, Sesshomaru sighed; biting his lip in thought, he thought about the last few months since Rin had turned into a demon-pup. One memory that came to mind was when Rin had wondered too far and he had had to use what his mother had called, _'the pup call'_. Sesshomaru knew that it was something that all Inu-Youkai instinctively knew how to do. And, he remembered that he had only had to use the call only once before. His mother had told him that if he could not get the pup that he was looking for to respond within the first few times of his calling them, then he would instinctively keep calling, but with more frequency until he located the missing pup. This was something that the Inu-lord dreaded because it went against everything that he made himself out to be; his image as an aloof demon lord was at stake. He shuddered at the image that arose in his mind's eye; one of himself running through the forest at top speed and barking his head off. Ridding himself of the thought, he turned left and started walking faster, nose testing the air for her scent at frequent intervals.

Now, as his anxiety heightened, Sesshomaru could feel the urge to call out for Rin, growing. Moving off into another direction, he searched for another twenty minutes, but could find nothing. Finally, he gave in to what his instincts were clambering for him to do. He opened his mouth and let lose a bark that was so high pitched that only Inu-Youkai could hear, then he paused to listen for a response. When none came, he tried once more but, with the same results as the first time. "Maybe she's out of hearing range. If that is the case, then, this Sesshomaru must hurry and find her before something else does," the Western Lord murmured while brushing a clawed hand through his tail, before continuing deeper into the forest.

Suddenly, he paused as the wind blew Rin's scent into his face . "Rin," he murmured and began walking faster, but once he came into the clearing, he froze at the sight that met his golden eyes. "Who is that?" he murmured as he gazed at the stunningly beautiful female demon lying on the ground. He could tell that she was beautiful even though her face was hidden from his sight. Growling in frustration, Sesshomaru turned to leave to continue his search for Rin, when the wind shifted again and blew the females scent in his direction again. Freezing in place, his he slowly swiveled his head around so that he was facing the female once more and took in her scent deep into his nose. Blinking, the Western Lord could hardly believe what his nose was telling him and muttered, "No. It's not possible. This Sesshomaru will not be fooled by some trick...but I must be sure."

Slowly, almost hesitantly, he walked closer towards the figure that lay in the clearing. Kneeling down, he slowly lifted a clawed hand to brush aside a lock of hair that covered the female's face from his sight. He hesitated with his clawed hand almost brushing her cheek, but then taking a deep breath he brushed the silky hair aside and gasped in surprise. "I can not believe this, but my nose and eyes do not deceive me," he murmured.

Just as he brushed his clawed fingers down the soft planes of her cheek, she began to awaken. Slowly her eyes fluttered before opening to reveal two of the most beautiful honey brown eyes that Sesshomaru had ever seen. They shimmered with golden highlights and reflected the suns light like the mirrors in his home. His breath caught at the sight while his heart suddenly began to beat at a frantic pace. Completely unfamiliar with this new sensation, Sesshomaru instinctively opened his mouth, exposing his fangs, and placed them on her shoulder before letting lose a possessive growl. The female flinched and tried to back away from the inuyoukai lord, but could not because she was lying on the ground in a vulnerable position. Instinct suddenly ruled her mind and before the Western Lord knew what had happened, Rin had kicked him away from her and had dashed off in the direction he had come from.

As she disappeared from his sight, Sesshomaru felt an overwhelming urge that he could no longer suppress. "Rin! Come back here!" he called while his blood literally boiled with the urge to chase her down and claim her as his mate. Instinct ruled the Western Lord's thoughts now and nothing would sway him from his goal. Fortunately for the young Inuyoukai lord, his goal just happened to be the adult female Inuyoukai that was currently running away from him. Eyes glowing red and growling in anticipation, he suddenly howled, before he jumped to his feet and dashed after her fleeting scent.


	14. Chapter 13

13

Sango gazed at the setting sun with a distant expression. They had been waiting all day for Sesshomaru to return but, so far he had yet to come back with Rin. Her thoughts had been stuck on one topic all day, and she could not let it go. It kept circling around and around in her mind and practically drove her crazy. She kept wondering if it was possible to turn back into a human, or if it was even possible to become human again. Sure, she had a responsibility to her village and her father, but the many benefits of being a demon outweighed the reasons for finding a cure. "I wonder if I really should stay like this," she thought as she listened to the sounds of the forest. They were louder than she was used to but, it was amazing at the amount of things that she could pick up. She could hear the distant call of a song bird calling for its mate, and the low rumble of a waterfall that she knew they had passed by a few days ago. Sniffing the air, Sango smiled as she detected the scent of grass and acorns, ""Hmm. I wonder what that is?" Slowly she traced the source of the scent towards the fox kit and murmured, "That must be Shippo's scent. I wonder what everyone else smells like?"

Curiosity getting the better of her, Sango scented the air once more and smelled the scent of mint and brimstone. Frowning at the strange smell, she tracked the source of the scent towards her lap and giggled, "So that's you, Kilala?"

"Mew!" the firecat replied, purring happily and rubbing her head against Sango's stomach. Over the centuries, it had become really depressing to watch as her human companions died of old age. But now, Sango had become a demon. Throughout their battles together, Kilala had watched as Sango's strength and agility increased; she was proud that she had helped the exterminator perfect her skills. Many many times after those battles, Kilala had thought that Sango would make a great cat demon but, she had known that that was only wishful thinking. Now, though, she realized that her dreams had come true but, she was a bit put out that Sango had to turn into a dog demon. Giving a little sign of resignation, Kilala tilted her head curiously and chirruped" Meew?"

Eyes widening as she understood what Kilala was saying, Sango whispered, "Oh my Kami! I can understand you!

"Mew!" the fire cat replied happily. Then, she repeated her first question, "Meew?"

"Huh? Oh no, I don't regret becoming a demon but, I'm not sure if Kohaku will recognize me," Sango replied with a hint of despair. She averted her eyes from her friend and stared at the ground as if it was the most important thing around and sighed dejectedly.

Hopping off of Sango's lap, Kilala sat herself down in front of her friend. Tilting her head to the right, she puffed out her chest fur, flicked her two tails and replied, "Mew. meow, mew!"

"You're right about that but, will he be able to love me? I mean look at me...how can he like having a demon as his sister?" Sango fretted; absently, she sank her claws into the trunk of the tree.

"Groooowwwwlllllll!" Kilala replied heatedly. She had to make her friend see that it didn't matter that she was a demon. Kohaku was Sango's only living relative and her little brother. It didn't matter because he was family and family should stick together. The only thing Sango needed to realize was that they both loved each other. "Mew, Pffft mew!" she argued, stamping her front paw on the ground to get her pint across.

Sango sniffled and smiled, "I'm such a baka. You are right, Kilala. He is my only family. I love him. But, I will save him from Nuraku and then we'll see what he thinks of me!" Sango giggled, removed her claws from the tree and pointing at her friend she replied,"Maybe he'll think I'm...what's that word that Kagome keeps saying...frozen?"

"Hisss. Mew!"

"Oh right! Maybe he'll think that it **cool** to have a demon for a sister, ne?" Sango replied, stressing the word, cool.

"Mew!" the fire cat replied, happily before jumping back into Sango's lap for an afternoon nap. Sango laughed. Kilala had managed to cheer her up and now, she felt much better about becoming a demon. Sighing, she gazed back towards the sky and smiled a true smile of happiness.

* * *

Finished with his conversation with Inu-Yasha, Miroku eyed at the piece of cloth in his hands as he continued to fashion a new outfit out of his priestly robes, and grumbled,"Now, how will I get a village woman to bear my child. If I show up in any village like I am now, the girls will run screaming, _demon_!" He mimicked their high pitch voices upon uttering the word, demon. Lifting a hand, he stared at his claws and sighed, "No one will have me now...not like this." 

Tilting his head towards the clouds, Miroku closed his eyes as the reality of what had happened, crashed down upon him like an avalanche. He glanced towards his warded hand and grimaced, he was now twice cursed. Not only did he still have the Kaazana but, now, he was no longer human, no longer accepted by humans, no longer welcome in the villages where young maidens laughed at his jokes or blushed when he complimented them. It hurt. It hurt so much, he wanted to cry from the sheer pain and loneliness that wracked his soul and wondered, _"Is this what Sesshomaru went through on a daily basis before he met, Rin?"_

A lone tear threatened to escape and roll down his cheek but, he managed to control himself enough to master his emotions and answer his own question, _"Yes. This must be what it was like for both Inu-Yasha and Sesshomaru...To be alone is a painful feeling." _

Sighing, Miroku glanced towards Sango and smiled, sadly. Sure, he knew that he had his friends and possibly Keade and the people of her village. But, would Sango accept him as he was now? She had never given him any indication that she liked or even loved him. Of course, groping her didn't help but, he wished with all of his heart that she would give him a small indication that she cared. He sighed, taking a deep breath through his nose and froze as the most tantalizing scent reached his nostrils. It was a mixture of lily's, leather and woman, "Hmm. That smells good. I wonder where that is coming from?" Sniffing their air like a hound after its prey, he slowly followed the scent until he faced Sango, who, at the moment, was staring at the sky with Kilala sleeping in her lap.

Eyes widening in surprise, he thought, "That smell is coming from Sango?" Taking a tentative sniff once more, he closed his eyes in blissful abandon. "Mmmmm," he hummed in pleasure as he breathed in his scent once more. Miroku began to enjoy this new found increase in his senses. Her scent was very alluring and he was tempted to go over to her and ravish her. But then, the reality of his situation with her made his fantasies come to a screeching halt. Frowning, he leaned forward to peer intently at his new gi when suddenly, his hair obstructed his view. Sighing in exasperation, he reached for the tie he kept in his pouch and began tying his long white and lavender hair into a low ponytail while continuing his train of thought, "If she doesn't love me, then I guess that my only choice is to find a nice demon to settle down with since, I doubt that there is a cure to this. But, I don't think I can bare it if she rejects me. "

* * *

Shippo stared hard at Sango, Miroku and Kagome. He was overjoyed at the fact that his human friends were demons. The fox kit knew that this meant that he would not outlive his friends. It also put a new light on his relationship with Kagome. Secretly, he considered her his mother and now it would become a reality. He would just have to be careful when teasing Inu-Yasha. _"Boy, he sure can't take a joke. I'm glad Kagome can sit him or I'd have been dead the first time I met Inu-Yasha."_

Glancing towards Miroku, Shippo watched as a multitude of emotions flashed across his face; one emotion was more prominent than the others, sadness. Frowning, the fox kit tilted his head and watched as Miroku stared at his cursed hand for a moment, then he fisted it and sighed. Shippo almost giggled when he heard the former monk whine quietly when he switched his attention towards his new claws. Curiosity getting the better of him, Shippo made his way over towards Miroku and sat down next to him. He watched as the former monk stared at Sango before he heard Miroku mutter, "I...I love her but, I'm afraid to tell her."

"You shouldn't be," Shippo told the monk.

"What?" Miroku asked, startled by the interruption of his thoughts.

"I said, you shouldn't be afraid to tell her that you love her. I'm sure that Sango feels the same way about you, "Shippo replied. Standing, he leaned his weight against Miroku's leg and continued, "I mean, I've smelled the way her scent changes when you're around her."

"Really? How can you be sure that she loves me?" Miroku asked as ray of hope raced through his veins.

"Her scent doesn't smell the same way when she meets other guys. It gets all angry and oh, I don't know...funny smelling. But, I do know that when you're around her, she smells like my mom and dad used to when they wanted time alone and sent me off to play."

"Oh?" Miroku cocked a brow in the fox kit's direction before leaning closer and continuing," Was the scent like Sango's is now?"

"Nope. It was stronger and kinda musky." Shippo innocently grinned up at the monk and continued, "The best way that I can describe it is..." The fox kit let his eyes wander through their campsite until they rested upon Kagome and Inu-Yasha. "Aaaaaaa! Like that!" he squawked, pointing at something over the monk's shoulder.

* * *

Locked deep within her consciousness, Kagome didn't have time to think about the new changes her body had gone through. Before this had happened, she had contemplated what it would be like if she wish to become like Inu-Yasha so that she could be with him. But, she knew that it was just a dream. Now, the dream had become a reality and oh, what a reality it was. She was now a full dog demon as well as her friends and most importantly, Inu-Yasha. All of this had happened without making a wish upon the jewel. She wondered how it was possible and who or what had caused them to change. 

Within her own mind, she was able to manifest herself in the form of a ghostly image that matched her reality of the outside world. Glancing down towards the jewel around her neck, she wondered if Modoriko had had a hand in this or was it possible that she had made an unconscious wish? Kagome shook her head at the thought. It wasn't possible to be able to turn from a human to a demon even if you wished upon the jewel. That would only taint the jewel and cause more problems for everyone in Japan. "Oh kami, I wonder what my mother will think!"

Kagome thought about her mother and smiled, "I'm sure she won't mind because I'm her daughter and she'll love me no matter what."Frowning, Kagome gazed down at her new spiritual claws and muttered, "If I didn't wish to become a demon, then, something must want us to be like this. I know we must defeat Naraku. But...why this?"

"Because it is what you all wanted but, refused to wish for...," a woman's voice whispered from deep within. Then a second voice spoke. This one sounded deeper, more like a man than the first, "And because of your unselfish wishes, we were granted leave by Kami to grant them."

"What?" Kagome shouted, whirling around, she scanned the blackness of her minds eye in order to locate where that mysterious voice was coming from. Up ahead, she could see a blue and pink light. Hesitantly, she made her way towards it and shouted, "Who are you! What are you and what are you talking about!"

"Who we are is not important. What we are does not matter. What matters is that you and your companions become stronger or it will mean the end of all," the voices whispered from deep within the shining light. Slowly the light began to dim and out of the light stepped two figures, one appeared to be a silver haired dog demon. He had his hair in a samurai topknot. He wore armor that appeared to be older than that of Sesshomaru's and his bearing was that of a lord. The woman wore the clothing of a miko and yet she also wore armor and carried a sword. This shocked Kagome into utter silence. Why would a demon who clearly had existed from way before hers and even Inu-Yasha's time, stand beside a miko dressed in ancient battle gear. And most of all, why would he even appear before her of all people. Kagome frowned at the demon as she gazed at his features and thought, "Why does this demon resemble Inu-Yasha and Sesshomaru?" Biting her lip, Kagome acknowledged their words and accepted them. But her curiosity got the better of her, so she decided to ask, "I would like to know your names. Please can you tell me?"

The great white demon glanced towards his companion before nodding. Stepping forward, he answered, "I am Inu No Taisho."

Kagome gasped in shock and yelled, "YOU'RE INU-YASHA AND SESSHOMARU'S FATHER!"

The dog lord nodded, "Hai. I am."

"Oh my god! Wait until I tell Inu-Yasha that I met you!" Kagome gushed, excitedly.

"I'm sorry but, you must not tell anyone that you've met us. All you can tell them is that you had a prophetic dream of what is to come," the miko said, stepping forward. The slight movement caught Kagome's attention and her eyes focused upon the miko.

Frowning, Kagome asked, "Who are you? You look familiar but, I just can't place you."

The miko smiled, mischievously as a small laugh escaped her pink tinged lips and replied, "I am surprised that you do not remember me, Kagome, since you carry my heart around your neck. I am, Modoriko."

"You're M...Modoriko?" Kagome stammered, completely overwhelmed at finding out about that bit of information.

"Yes. I was and am the great Modoriko of which you are descended from." Modoriko laughed when Kagome's spirit seemed to fall down on her rear end in shock. "Come now. Don't be too surprised. Why else would you have been born a powerful miko with my heart encased within your body."

"But, Keade said that I was the reincarnation of..." Kagome tried to explain, but was cut off when Modoriko raised her hand, asking for silence.

"I will explain," the great miko sighed. "From the beginning, I was blessed with great power but, with that power came great responsibility. I was able to purify Youkai, heal great wounds, communicate with nature and see the future. That last blessing, became a curse...for I knew of when I would die."

Kagome sat there in awed silence, her eyes widened each time Modoriko listed her gifts. But she became shocked when she heard of the last one, "Oh, that's sad and a bit scary to know when you'll die."

Inu-Taisho smiled and replied, "No, not really. I had the gift of foresight as well. I knew what was coming and I saw what I had done after my first mate had died." He growled unhappily at the memory before smiling, " I was shown three possible futures. In one, I foresaw myself standing beside a young princess heavy with child. Who, later bore a hanyou. This hanyou, whom I realized was my son, had grown up and began to travel with some human friends, he fought against an enemy and eventually he defeated him but, I also felt a greater threat that was to come. I foresaw the death of both of my sons."

Kagome gasped as he revealed these things to her. She wanted to ask him many things, but before she could, Modoriko continued speaking," Yes. I too saw those very same futures but, I knew that my death would not be in vane. I made sure to follow the correct path to bring about the current future. You, Kagome are reincarnated from Kikyo, however, you are also a descendent of her brother and of my only son. So, in a sense your Keade is right.

"W-What? I'm your many greats grand child!" Kagome put her hand to her forehead, suddenly feeling very dizzy. "Oh, I've got to sit down...Oh, wait. I am sitting down," Kagome murmured, blushing.

Modoriko chuckled and replied, "Yes, Kagome. You are my grandchild twenty times removed."

"Wow! This is allot to take in but, I want to know what those other visions were about," Kagome murmured while turning her attention towards the dog lord. "What were they like?"

Inu-Taisho frowned, deep in thought as he recalled the events and replied, "In my other vision, I did not see the princess or the hanyou. All that was revealed to me was darkness...it was as if the world had ceased to exist." He sighed and then smiled, "In my third and final vision, my son was somehow turned into a full blooded dog demon as well as his companions. I saw a ray of hope for my sons and the world. So it was with these visions that I was forewarned. I then set about changing the future. Because, all of you need to become stronger for their is a great darkness coming. This darkness is even stronger than your current opponent, Naraku."

"NANI!" Kagome yelled. Before she could say anything else, she was suddenly awake and in the conscious world. The first thing that met her gaze were two golden orbs. Blinking away the fuzziness, Kagome was about to sit up but, suddenly froze for half a second when she heard Inu-Yasha whisper, Keri, to her. Overwhelmed with happiness, she impulsively launched herself at him and kissed him right on the lips.

* * *

As Kagome launched herself at him and kissed him directly on the lips, Inu-Yasha was in a state of full blown panic,_"Oh kami...Ka-kagome's kissing me!"_ His hands hovered from mid air to almost grasping her shoulders. He was enjoying the sensation allot but, he couldn't believe that this was happening to him. Sure, Kagome had kissed him once to help him regain control when that demon had tried to his human soul by the use of that magic mirror. That kiss was forgotten in the heat of battle and was never discussed afterwards. The only other time he had ever been kissed was when Kikyo was alive but, none of those kisses compared to what he and Kagome were sharing right now. 

Finally, his hands rested upon her shoulders and a fleeting thought ran through his mind, _"Should I push her away or should I pull her closer?"_ One part of him told him to throw her on the ground and ravish her; the other part said that she would become angry if he took advantage of her. "No. I can't do this. I need to help her regain control," he thought as he mentally commanded his hands to push her away. These thoughts only lasted a split second before Kagome inserted her tongue into his mouth. She carefully avoided his fangs with each stroke, mimicking the act of sex with her tongue. Inu-Yasha started in surprise; he had been in the process of gathering his strength to push her away but, that split second of hesitation, allowed the pleasure of the kiss to overload his sense of reason, "Mmmmm," Inu-Yasha groaned. His senses were going haywire due to the fact that his newly transformed body was unused to such strong sensations. It pushed his instincts into overdrive, and those instincts were screaming at him to take her as his mate. He shivered as little sparks of pleasure shot down his spine when Kagome started to rub his ears. Growling deep in his chest, he grasped Kagome by the shoulders, pulled her closer and deepened the kiss

Kagome responded to his ardent response with even more vigor than before by moaning and rocking her hips against his hardened arousal. As the little bundle of nerves in her lower region brushed against his arousal, she cried out, "Nnnnn, Inu-Yasha!" Enjoying the sensation, she rocked faster against him, her mating instincts practically overwhelming her senses. All coherent thought flew out the window as she gently raked her claws against his muscular chest. Her body wanted one thing and one thing only, and that was to complete what they were doing. It demanded something that was just out of her range of knowledge. Mentally, Kagome knew the mechanics of what went on between a man and a woman, but physically, she was a virgin. Plus, her emotions were involved as well as her new demon instincts, thus this compounded the situation and made it much harder for her to break away. Both of them were oblivious to the world around them.

* * *

Miroku's head whipped around so fast you could hear the crack of displaced air. "Heh! I never thought he had it in him to do that with Kagome," he murmured. "But, there's only one thing I can say to that...way to go, Inu-Yasha!" he cheered while leering at the both of them. 

Sango's attention was drawn by the sound of Miroku's shout, so she turned towards the monk with a puzzled expression before letting her eyes roam towards Kagome. Eyes widening in surprise, she gasped,"Oh my god!" Turning towards the fox kit, Sango grabbed the Kitsune, covered his eyes and murmured, "You shouldn't watch this...you're too young." Then, tilting her head to get a better view, Sango swallowed hard and blushed bright red as a new scent invaded her nostrils and thought, "_Oh Kami, that smell must be the scent of arousal. I'd better break them up before they go any further._" Just as Sango was passing by Miroku, a loud howl split the air. The sound was so loud that it startled both Inu-Yasha and Kagome enough that they broke apart and turned towards the direction that the sound was coming from.

* * *

Sesshomaru pursued his prey with cunning and determination. She was fast, faster than he had anticipated but, that only made him more determined to catch her. As he chased after Rin, he was able to calm his instincts to a certain degree but, they refused to be fully suppressed. He hoped that when he caught her, he would be able to keep a tight reign on them. Focusing upon his fleeing prey, a smile appeared upon his lips. If anyone had been around at that moment, they would have shuddered in fear and run the other way. Sesshomaru never showed any hint of emotion. The only times he did show emotion was when he was about to kill something. 

Now, the smile that had appeared was one of enjoyment. He was enjoying the chase too much. Rin was instinctively using everything he had taught her to escape him. She wove around trees and dodged his every effort to catch her. "Rin! You must stop this. You are only making it worse!" he growled as his instinct to claim her as his mate flared to an almost uncontrollable level. Pausing, he panted as he struggled to gain control over his mating instincts. It took him a few minutes to regain control but, by the time he tried to locate Rin again, she was gone. Growling, he took off after her scent trail.

He ran as he had never run before. Everything within him screamed that he had to catch her, and for once, Sesshomaru listened to his instincts. There! Just up ahead, he saw a flash of white disappearing around a large tree. He could now hear the pounding of feet against the ground and the beating of her heart. Inhaling deeply, his eyes flashed red once more as her scent hit him full on. He was determined to catch her, so he focused his youkai upon his legs and ran faster. "Rin" he growled just as he was about to lay a clawed hand upon her shoulder.

As Rin ran, her mind was totally overwhelmed by her instincts. She was unable to recognize the male that pursued her. Since her instincts ruled her mind, they screamed at her to run, and run she did. She could smell the male as he gained on her and shivered. A part of her screamed at her to fight him to test his strength. But first, she wanted to see if he was fast enough to catch her. Rin glanced over her shoulder to see that the male demon was upon her and dodged at the last second. Picking a new direction, she shot off at a faster speed than before.

This impressed Sesshomaru and a feeling of pride welled from deep within his chest. He had taught her this and she was using everything within her power to escape him. Sesshomaru's previous doubts about claiming her his mate while she was this young, fled. Growling, he narrowed his eyes in determination and pushed himself harder in an effort to catch up to her.

Recognizing the surrounding area, he scented the air again and could now smell his brother and the rest of his pack. But, he ignored them, his attention was focused upon Rin as she dashed straight into their camp. Grinning in triumph, he lunged. As both of his hands grasped her shoulders, the force of his lunge caused them to tumble like a ball of yarn, into the middle of the campsite. He blocked out their gasps of surprise at his uncharacteristic entry into camp. His mind was focused on controlling the she demon in his grasp.

Rin fought like a wild thing, snarling she struggled to be the one on top but, Sesshomaru refused to let her gain the advantage. He managed to pin her face down upon the ground. Growling and snarling, he refused to let her bring her claws into play. After a few moments, she went limp in submission. This made his instincts flare again, and ginning in triumph, he grasped her by the shoulders, tilted his head and bit her right at the junction of her neck and shoulder. A deep rumble of satisfaction erupted from deep within his chest and his eyes faded from red to their normal golden color. His inner demon was now satisfied, the female could not be claimed by any other, Rin was now his mate.

Rin blinked as her conscious mind regained the ability to reason. She slowly took stock of her situation and wondered why Sesshomaru was biting her. Instinctively, she knew not to move but, it was hard for her childlike mind to comprehend the events of what had just transpired. A few months ago when Sesshomaru had begun teaching her the ways of Inu-Yokai, he had explained the significance of what happened between a male and female Inu when the male chooses his mate and claims her. Joy surged through her heart as she finally realized that of all the demonesses he could have chosen, Sesshomaru had chosen her as his mate and thought, _"Rin is happy that she is Sesshomaru-samma's mate. Now, Rin can be with Sesshomaru-sama forever!"_

As all sense returned to the Western Lord, he took stock of the situation. He noticed that he still had his fangs embedded in the junction of Rin's neck and shoulder. Slowly, but carefully, he removed his fangs. And as a small bead of blood welled from the spot, he instinctively and sensually, laved the small wound. This caused Rin to moan at the pleasurable sensation. Sesshomaru froze as he realized just what he was doing and thought, "This Sesshomaru has to stop. Rin's body may be grown but, her mind is that of a child." He struggled to regain control over his instincts but it was difficult because the feel of her body within his embrace sent his senses spinning. A deep rumbling purr resounded in his chest as he continued to lave at the small wound. For the first time in seven hundred years, he was happy.

Kagome, Inu-Yasha and the rest of their group watched the proceedings in utter shock as the stoic lord behaved in a manner quite unlike him. Inu-Yasha being the most knowledgeable of their group in Youkai mating habits, grinned at his brothers predicament and then began laughing uncontrollably,"Hahahahahahahaha!"

Kagome glanced at the former hanyou and wondered why Inu-Yasha was laughing. She opened her mouth to yell at him when Sesshomaru turned his attention towards the former hanyou and growled menacingly,"Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!" This shut him up really quick but, he still managed to say, "What? You have to admit that you would have never seen the day that you finally picked a mate. I mean, you're so picky about choosing a female...even if there aren't that many left."

Sesshomaru could feel how uncomfortable his little brother's comments were making Rin feel, so he decided to make him stop. "Shut up little brother or this Sesshomaru might forget that you are family," the dog lord growled as he glared daggers at the former hanyou.

"Ah, come on. Can't you take a little teasing?" Inu-Yasha replied, grinning.

Frowning at Inu-Yasha's behavior, Kagome growled at him, "That's enough, Inu-Yasha!"

"But," Inu-Yasha spluttered.

"No. Stop teasing him! Can't you see that you're embarrassing Rin!" Kagome yelled, angrily. She could see the rising flush to Rin's cheeks and had decided that she should intervene. But, unfortunately for the former hanyou, he was still unable to see the obvious. "Ah, Kagome, come on. It's funny!" he complained.

Completely losing her cool, Kagome finally snapped, "SIT!"

Inu-Yasha cursed fluently as he was slammed into the ground. He was not happy that she had to resort to using the rosary but, decided that he would stop his teasing, for now. Besides, he could tease his brother later when they were alone. After the spell wore off, he sat up and noticed that his brother was now leaning against a tree with Rin cradled in his arms and resting her head against his chest.

"Mina?" Kagome called to get their attention. Everyone glanced her way, questioningly.

"What is it, Kagome?" Sango asked, curiously.

"I had a vision while I was unconscious. I met up with Modoriko and someone else," she hesitated to mention Inu-Yasha's father.

Curiosity getting the better of him, Miroku leaned forward and inquired, "Who, Kagome-sama?"

Shippo couldn't stand the suspense any longer and hopped up onto her shoulder, "Yeah! Who was it Kagome?"

Sesshomaru turned his attention towards his brother's mate to be and listened intently to their conversation. He was curious as well but, he knew that silence was his best option if he wanted to hear her explain. This tactic had worked well in the past when he interrogated his enemies. They always cracked under is intent stare and spill everything they knew. Focusing his attention from his thoughts back towards Kagome, he listened as she began speaking, "It was your father, Inu-No Taisho."

"What!" Inu-Yasha screamed, surprised at this tidbit of information. Not able to believe it, he shook his head and asked,"You're kidding right?"

"I wish I was but, It was him all right," Kagome replied before she began to describe the demon that Sesshomaru knew for a fact, was their father.

"Chi-huie," Seshomaru's whisper of awe echoed through the camp like the crack of a whip. The intensity of that one word caught everyone's attention. "Inu-Yasha, your mate has described father perfectly. This Sesshomaru believes that she has met father's spirit." Turning his attention towards Kagome, Sesshomaru eyed her intently and wondered why his father would appear before a miko. Curiosity getting the better of him, Sesshomaru raised one eyebrow and murmured, "Explain."

Kagome nodded, "Ok. But, you're not going to like this." Then she took a deep breath and began.

Sesshomaru listened intently to her story and was annoyed at the new turn of events. But, his only reaction to the news that there was a greater threat than Naraku was the frown upon his lips and the cold demeanor he showed to the world. Once Kagome finished he remained silent for a few moments before releasing the tension that had gathered in his shoulders and sighing, he replied, "Then we must become stronger and be able to defeat it. I will start training all of you tomorrow. But now, we must rest. It has been a tiring day." With those words, the Western lord closed his eyes and drifted off into a light slumber. Seeing that they would get nothing more from him, the group settled themselves for the night and hoped that the next day of training would not be too taxing.

* * *

AN: Hi! I hope you liked this chapter. I enjoyed writing it. Please note that it takes time to produce good or even outstanding chapters and I have to be happy with what I've written even before I post it. I also have to pre-read it myself and that takes time as well. I have a full time job and a real life. I try to write when my muse strikes me, that way I don't write horrible chapters that don't make any sense. Plus, you get longer chapters like this one.

For those of you who thought that I would have a lime/lemon scene with Rin and Sesshomaru...I'll say...don't take this comment the wrong way but, "Um, That's gross. I say this because, mentally she's still a child and Sesshomaru knows that. However, she still can be claimed as a mate. That doesn't mean that they'll have sex. In 10 years when she matures more,...then I'll think about it." In this chapter you've seen slight lime action but nothing overblown. It has to be worked up to and in this story, I'm not sure when but it probably won't be any time soon since even I'm not sure how many chapters this story will have. Oh, I have such great plans and so much to write!

On another note, I've found one of the best Inu-Kagome stories on the net. It's called "The Lucky Ones. and can be found on mediaminor. Go check it out and I'm sure you'll enjoy it. Let me tell you...reading other people's stories helps me recharge my creative batteries and gives me new a better ideas for my stories as well.


	15. Chapter 14

PLEASE READ THE AUTHORS NOTE...IT'S IMPORTANT!

An:"Wow! So many reviews! I'll just say thank you to all of you instead of to each individual who reviewed. Now, If any of you would like to do some fan art of how Inu-Yasha and the gang look as full blooded dog demons, you're more than welcome! If I could draw as well as some of you ...I'd do it!

I'll pick one that perfectly describes each chapter and host it on my website! You can do battle scenes with the dragon, Rin and Sesshomaru when she's just a inu-pup or any other thing that fits the chapter!

On another note, I've been signed up to get my Insurance License, so I'll be starting night school on April 28th through July 20th. So my writing will be curtailed allot. Getting my license is more important than writing because it will enable me to get a raise. That's a good thing because living in NJ, you need to be able to support yourself and believe me, at the rate I'm being paid now...I can't afford an apartment! Anyhooo, I'll try to write if I'm able but, don't demand other chapters or say hurry up and post another. Believe me, I'll try to write and post more...I really will but, school comes first.

Oh, and I'm looking for a bit of help in finding 2 stories that used to be posted on I don't remember the titles but one of them has both Kagome and Inu-Yasha turning into full blooded dog demons. It has something to do with a prophesy or some such. I loved that story. It was very long too. If I remember correctly, Inu's hair was slightly golden in color or maybe it was the marks on his or her face...Arg! Ok, so it's fuzzy in my head but, I really want to read it again!

The other story I'm looking for is where Kagome gets kidnapped by Naraku and is imprisioned. Sesshomaru and Inu-Yasha team up to go and save her because Kagome's powers are about to explode which will in effect purify everything within a certain radius. In this story, her powers do explode but instead of killing Sesshomaru, it turns him human for a while. ...MUST READ THEM AGAIN!

Well, enough about the authors note...on to the story! I hope you'll enjoy! Oh, and by the way...SLIGHT LEMON WARNING!"

* * *

Chapter 14 

As the battle scene between Rin and Kagura faded from view, Kana lowered her mirror and commented, "It seems that Kagura has failed again, Master Naraku."

Naraku growled, furiously and narrowing his eyes to mere slits, he bared his human like teeth and murmured, "You have failed me for the last time, Kagura and you knew what the consequences were should you fail." The evil hanyou turned his attention towards Kana, "Go retrieve her and bring her back. I have a few things to say to my incompetent incarnation."

"Yes, Master Naraku," Kana whispered quietly, before she suddenly faded from sight.

Once Kana had disappeared, Naraku turned his gaze back towards the view of the setting sun and silently contemplated what he would do to the wind user. "Damn bitch!...she will learn the price of her failure," he ground out, just as the sun disappeared from the sky and left the room in complete darkness.

* * *

Not to far from the battle site, two figures were chasing after a fast moving tornado as it sped over the terrain in search of their prey, Naraku. Ginta stopped running, bent over, hands on his knees, panting for breath and yelled, "Oi! Koga! Can't we rest now! We've been running since early yesterday morning and haven't had a break since!" 

Suddenly, the whirling tornado stopped and revealed a lone wolf demon known as, Koga glanced over his shoulder towards Ginta and Hakaku and muttered, "Damn they're slow...but, then they don't have Shikon shards in their legs like I do." Sighing, the wolf prince sniffed the air for the tell tale signs of game and water before he yelled, "Fine! We'll rest but, we'll camp by the river that's nearby so there will be some water to drink!" Turning, he dashed off towards the scent, his departing words carried towards his companions, "Now hurry up or you'll be left behind!"

Glancing over at his white and back haired companion, the wolf youkai named Hakaku groaned, "Ooh, I don't think I can run anymore Ginta." He was still bent over while trying to catch his breath, he turned his head towards the trailing dust cloud and whimpered as he watched Koga disappeared deep into the forest.

"Oh, you know Koga is always like this, Hakaku," Ginta replied with a grin at his pack mate whose hair defied gravity by sporting a mohawk, "But, I'm glad he's decided to let us rest." As Ginta stood up, he took a good look at their surroundings and as the realization dawned upon him that the area was very familiar to him he suddenly exclaimed, "Hakaku! Aren't we very close to Ayame's den?"

"Yeah. We are! It would be so nice to see Ayame again...and I'm sure that Koga would love to see her again, " he replied with a wide grin on his face as he started following their leaders scent trail towards the perspective camp site.

"But, shouldn't we tell Koga?" Ginta asked, frowning.

"Nah, I think he'll like it if she surprises him...especially at this time of year, " Hakaku replied with a wicked gleam in his eye.

Finally catching the meaning of his words, Ginta grinned mischievously and replied, "Oh yeah, that. Well I think its a good idea as well since we'll get to see Ayame again anyway."

"Come on, lets go before Koga gets too far ahead and we lose him," Hakaku replied as he stood up and began following their leaders scent trail.

Suddenly, the quite of the forest was shattered as a scream echoed through the trees. "Huh, What the heck was that?" Ginta asked, while scratching his head.

Hakaku was silent for a moment before it suddenly hit him, "It's a girl!"

"What?" Ginta replied, completely clue-less as to his friends thoughts.

"It sounded like a girl that screamed." Hakaku explained. "She must have met been attacked! We've got to help her!"

* * *

Just as Koga entered the forest he stopped running and began walking to conserve his energy. Taking a deep breath, he sighed as he enjoyed the loamy scent of the surrounding forest. The sounds of the forest was soothing to his ears as well as the sight of the bright blue sky. He began glancing around, looking for a good spot to set up camp. He paused as his stomach gave a loud rumble, he glanced down while placing a hand over it and chucked, "I guess its time to hunt for something to eat." Koga thought for a moment before he grinned, "I guess fish will do since its a quick way of getting a meal." 

Turning, the wolf prince headed off in the direction of the river and contemplated about his search for Naraku. So far, he had been unable to find the evil hanyou but, he had heard of many rummers that said that a very powerful youkai resided past these mountains. Koga was bound and determined to investigate every roomer that crossed his path, so in his haste to leave the den, he had begun this journey without the necessary supplies. "I shouldn't have been in such a rush," he mused, " that, must be why I forgot to bring supplies for the trip."

He was so deep in his musings that when he entered the clearing by the river, he failed to catch sight of the pile of clothes resting on top of a boulder not too far from where he stood. So, oblivious was he, that he walked right past them. Kneeling down at the rivers edge, Koga dipped his hands into the water and prepared to take a drink. As he lifted his hand towards his mouth, the sound of something breaking the surface of the water caught his attention. He quickly glanced up and froze at the sight of a female wolf youkai. Her skin glistened with water from the river as she stood, her body completely shaded by the shadows of a large tree. He could feel himself harden at the sight of her supple flesh and the way the water ran off of her toned midriff. He ran his eyes from her stomach towards the two rounded globes that just begged to be suckled. Koga sensed something strange but, he couldn't put a finger on it. As he gazed at the beauty standing in the middle of the river, his tail began to twitch involuntarily; turning his head, he glared at it and thought,_"What the hell! Its never done that before! You better cut that out...stupid tail doing things it shouldn't..."_ He growled at it while muttering,_"Its like it has a mind of its own!"_ He gave his tail a final glare before turning his attention back towards the figure standing waist deep in the river. As he watched, she bent down to cup more water in her hands, which gave him a good view of her breasts. He inhaled deeply, somehow a bit surprised but, deeply pleased at the sight of something so alluring. Taking another deep breath, he closed his eyes in bliss as her scent invaded his senses. Opening his eyes, he stared at them while his mouth went dry, he could feel his demon blood beginning to surface. Slowly, he took his eyes off of her breasts and lifted them towards her face. He wanted to see if her face was as captivating as her body. He watched as she stepped out of the shadows and into the light while lifting her her arms to wring out her wet red hair...

"Wait a minute...wolf youkai female...red hair...Ayame?" Koga exclaimed, his voice cracking as he said her name. He couldn't believe what his eyes were telling him. The female standing before him was not the little girl he had saved from the Birds of Paradise anymore but, a grown woman with lush curves that could make any male wolf youkai howl at the moon. It had been two years since he'd last seen her and in that time, Ayame had matured a great deal. Her hair, no longer restrained by pigtails, hung down past her waist like a red waterfall. Koga gaped at her lush figure and in his shock, he couldn't seem to tear his eyes away from her body.

At the sound of her name being uttered, Ayame turned around to see Koga kneeling by the rivers edge with his eyes glued to her body. It took a few minutes for her to register this fact before her eyes widened with surprise,"Koga?" When a passing breeze over her wet naked flesh made her shiver, Ayame suddenly remembered that she was stark naked and standing in full view of the brown wolf prince. She did the only thing that passed through her mind at the moment, she covered her breasts with her arms, turned around so that her back was all that he could see, and let loose a piercing scream,"AAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Blushing six shades of red, Koga took a step forward and began rubbing the back of his neck and stammering out an apology, "I...I'm sorry, Ayame. I...I d-didn't mean to...um that is..."

He was interrupted when Ayame sunk chest deep into the water, glanced over her shoulder at him and screamed,"Koga, you hentai!"

Growling in anger at being called a pervert, he began moving towards her, completely forgetting her state of undress until he stood directly in front of her," Now wait a minute...I'm not a," he froze and then began blushing harder as he realized that he had forgotten that Ayame was naked. His blood began to heat as her scent hit his nose again. Blinking, he shook his head as he tried to regain his senses but, before he could regain full control over himself, he had pulled Ayame into his arms and began sniffing and licking the side of her neck.

Ayame gasped and yelled, "Koga what the heck is wrong with you!" She began to squirm but, froze when he whipped her around while growing loudly. She gasped in shock as he bit the back of her neck gently; not breaking the skin but, firm enough to let her know not to move. "Ayame...don't move," Koga panted while trying to regain some semblance of control. He didn't understand why he was doing this but, he was determined to find out.

She could feel his breath hot against her neck, squirming she thought,_"What the heck is the matter with him? Why is he acting this way? I thought he wanted Kagome as his mate! But, he made that promise to me when I was little. Maybe he plans to honor it? Then again, knowing Koga, I don't think he will!_" Focusing once more, Ayame growled, "Koga, you had better explain why you're doing this!"

Taking in her scent, Koga tried to figure out why he was acting so strangely. It took him a few moments to realize what was going on but when the realization hit, he began to curse mentally,_"Kuso! Of all the times to forget that it's mating season! I've got to get away from her! I want to mate Kagome...not Ayame!"_ Koga involuntarily tightened his arms around Ayame; as his body brushed against her lush curves, his thoughts suddenly turned perverted,_"but, oh Kami, she smells so good and her body..." _His mouth watered at the thought of bending her over till he had complete access to her secret treasure that the water level kept hidden from his eyes, and thought with a laviscious grin, _"I want to taste her."_

"Koga, you have two seconds to answer me or I'm going to knock you senseless!" Ayame growled as she felt his arms tighten around her waist.

Swallowing the lump that had suddenly formed in his throat, Koga groaned as he struggled with himself before replying with a heated growl; the lust in his voice was unmistakable,"Your in heat, Ayame. Don't move or I might lose control."

"I am?" Ayame blinked as his words registered and then growled angrily, "So that's why you're doing this! It has nothing to do with your promise to me!" Completely forgetting what he had told her, Ayame began to squirm while yelling,"You bastard! Let me go!" but in the process she accidentally brushed against something hard.

Koga shuddered as his ridged member came in contact with her lush backside through the folds of his furs and his eyes flashed red when she rubbed against him. Koga could no longer think straight as his instincts to mate took complete control and he involuntarily jerked his hips forward to press against her backside while at the same time he sank his teeth deeper into her shoulder, effectively marking her as his mate. "Mine," Koga's feral side growled.

"Aaaa!"Ayame squeaked in pain as his teeth sank deep into her neck and her eyes rolled wildly at the sudden feel of him pressing hard against her entrance. Ayame lost her concentration, when with each jerk of his hips, Koga managed to hit the small bundle of nerves between her legs, sending violent shivers of pleasure racing through her body and effectively causing her instincts to mate to take complete control.

Still lost to his instincts, Koga reached for the ties of his own furs and began to remove them. But, just as he was about to push them off and claim Ayame completely, Ginta and Hakaku entered the clearing yelling his name,"Koga!"

"We heard a girl scream!" Ginta yelled before he froze at the sight of their leader holding onto a naked Ayame with his teeth sunk deep into her neck.

"Uh oh," Hakaku whispered as he peered over Ginta's shoulder to see Koga about to mate with the white wolf princess. He began slowly edging away from the clearing. He knew to never interrupt a mating pair.

Removing his fangs from the females neck, Koga snarled at the intruders. This accomplished two things, first it served as a warning towards the two invading males and second, it effectively carried Ayame's heat scent away from his nose. Suddenly, Koga red eyes faded to their normal blue color as he regained his senses. Blinking at his two subordinates, Koga completely forgot about the warm bundle in his arms and growled,"What is it!"

Ginta grinned stupidly and yelled, "So you decided to keep your promise to Ayame-sama!"

"WHAT! Why would I do that when I want to mate with Kagome!" Koga practically screamed before the warm bundle in his arms began squirming. Koga froze as the upper part of his arm brushed against something soft and round; he slowly turned his head and gulped when his gaze encountered that of a pair of sparkling green eyes, wet with the beginning of tears. Koga's eyes widened when he realized he was holding a very naked Ayame in his arms. His eyes tracked her every movement as one hand rose to cover the bite mark on her neck. It took a second for him to realize that he could still taste blood on his tongue before Ayame violently pushed him away as the tears she could no longer hold inside began falling. She whimpered quietly as she gazed at him, her eyes told him of the hurt and betrayal she felt at his actions. Koga felt his tail curl between his legs as he took a cautious step closer and whined his distress.

"How could you?" the whisper was so soft that the wolf prince had to strain his ears to hear. Ayame's voice became louder as several tears trailed down her cheeks. "How could you mark me and still want her!"

Koga lowered his head submissively and took another step closer, lifting his hand towards her, he tried to apologize, "Ayame, I..." but, he never finished because with a loud cry, she slapped his right cheek so hard that his face jerked in the same direction. Then she ran out of the river, never stooping as she scooped up her furs and disappeared from sight. Even without jewel shards in her legs, she was very fast.

Lifting his hand, Koga covered his stinging cheek and felt like the lowest form of life on the planet,"Ayame...I'm sorry," he whispered as hurt began to cloud his crystal clear blue eyes. A few moments passed before Koga remembered the reason why he had first gotten into this situation, Koga dashed after her and cursed, "KUSO! Even if I didn't want her as my mate before, she is now, and worst of all...she's still in heat! I've got to find her!" As he disappeared from sight, Ginta and Hakaku heard one last shout in the distance,"AYAME!"

Ginta and Hakaku blinked as the drama they had witnessed finally came to an end. Turning towards his companion, Ginta whined,"I think they forgot about us!"

Nodding his head, Hakaku agreed,"Hai. And we should try to catch up or we'll be left behind. Come on lets go!" As the two began running, they followed the scent of Ayame's tears and hoped that Koga could make amends with his new mate.

* * *

Clang 

clash

caching!

The group watched from the sidelines as the battle raged fast and furious between Sesshomaru and Inu-Yasha. As Inu-Yasha charged, sword over his head for a downward strike, he suddenly tripped, falling flat on his face with a loud thud. "Damn! Why does it keep doing that!" Inu-Yasha cursed as he arose and dusted himself off.

Sesshomaru snickered, quietly while suggesting, "Inu-Yasha, why don't you wear your tail over your shoulder? It will keep it out of your way and you won't trip on it in the middle of a battle.

Being the stubborn younger brother that he was, the former hanyou growled,"I'm fine! I just have to learn how to control it!" Then, he muttered quietly to himself, "Stupid tail...keeps tripping me up." Shaking himself off, he sprang into action once more. But, it only took several more times of landing flat on his face before Inu-Yasha gave in. Only this time he wore his tail on his left shoulder instead of on his right, like Sesshomaru. Now they fought with no interruptions and when their blades clashed and locked once more, Sesshomaru managed to send Inu-Yasha flying through the air with one good shove. As Inu-Yasha tumbled end over end, he frantically tried to right himself before he hit the tree in back of him. Finally, he managed to position himself until his feet faced the tree. When he felt them touch the trunk, he managed to push himself back into the fray with a strong push of his new body.

As their blades met once more, Sesshomaru slid backwards a few inches due to the force behind Inu-Yasha's rebound. Smiling slightly, Sesshomaru commented, "Not bad, little brother but," Sesshomaru suddenly disappeared from sight but, his voice continued to echo in the younger dog demon's ears,.."can you counter this one?"

Suddenly, Inu-Yasha felt his legs go out from under him. Thinking quickly, he rolled with the fall, placed his hands on the ground and flipped back upright, while at the same time, blocking a blow from connecting with his stomach. Landing on his feet, Inu-Yasha grinned and replied cockily, "Feh! I can take anything you dish out!"

"Don't get to cocky, Inu-Yasha. You must keep your cool and not let your pride or your emotions rule your decisions when in battle, " Sesshomaru replied, smoothly as he moved to continue his offensive attack. So far, his little brother was doing quite well considering that he had no formal training with the sword but, he still waived it around like it was a toy. _"This Sesshomaru will fix that problem even if I have to beat it out of him,"_ the youkai lord thought as he aimed a lightning fast blow towards his little brothers unprotected right flank. He felt a flicker of deep satisfaction as Inu-Yasha twisted and blocked the blow, while at the same time, rising his right leg and lashing out at Sesshomaru's stomach.

Giving a growl of slight approval, Sesshomaru blocked the blow with his forearm and before Inu-Yasha could withdraw his leg, the Lord of the West grabbed it and held it tightly. "Kuso, Inu-Yasha cursed, windmilling his arms and hopping on his one leg to get his balance. Grinning, Inu-Yasha stupidly used the Tetsaiga to support himself and muttered, "Feh!"

Rolling his eyes at Inu-Yasha's thoughtless action, Sesshomaru continued to lecture his younger brother, " Inu-Yasha, there is one thing you must learn," Sesshomaru dug his right foot deeper into the ground and tensed his leg muscles, "...and that is if you are against an opponent who manages to get you in this same type of hold. " His grip tightened even more as he drew Inu-Yasha closer, "...you should never lower your weapon even if you are off balance!" With those words still ringing in the air, Sesshomaru launched himself off the ground and double kicked Inu-Yasha, once in the face and another in the chest. The chest blow sent Inu-Yasha flying to land in a dazed heap on the ground.

As Inu-Yasha struggled to regain his senses, he suddenly felt the tip of his brothers sword Tensaiga pressed against his neck, "You are dead, Inu-Yasha."

As Inu-Yasha lay there panting, he glared at the older dog demon before cursing, "Kuso! I almost had ya!"

At the younger dog demons words, Sesshomaru did something that shocked Inu-Yasha, speechless. He laughed. It was a laugh filled with genuine humor, "I'm sure you tried, little brother. However, this Sesshomaru has had more battle experience than you've seen in your seventy eight years of existence."

"Feh! I could have! I've done it before!" Inu-Yasha insisted as he stood up, brushing off his hakama.

Sesshomaru snorted, delicately and replied, "The only reason you managed to gain the advantage was because you surprised me. If I had been battling seriously and not testing you, then you would have been dead."

"I..." the younger dog demon tried to say but, he was interrupted by a shout from Miroku.

"He's right, Inu-Yasha! Sesshomaru is more experienced than you are in battle. You've got to remember that he fought at your fathers side before you were born."

"Shut up!" Inu-Yasha growled, his pride refused to believe the former monks words.

Kagome rolled her eyes at Inu-Yasha as she leaned heavily against a tree trunk; Sesshomaru had started early today when he had begun training them, and Kagome was dead tired. So here she was, sitting against a tree while trying to regain her stamina and watching as both brothers battled. Now, Inu-Yasha was being stubborn and refused to believe that he was wrong, so she sighed quietly and interjected, "Inu-Yasha, you know Miroku is right. If your Sesshomaru had been serious in killing you, and not training you or testing your strength, then you would have been long dead and Naraku would have already won."

Inu-Yasha crossed his arms across his chest, flattened his ears, and muttered, "Feh," which in Kagome's opinion, surmounted to an agreement. He seemed to have deflated a little since he gave a tired sigh and replied quietly, "I know...and that's what bugs me."

"Cheer up, Inu-Yasha!" Shippo chirped."At least you managed to last longer than us when you were training with him, just now."

"Yes. I think you did very well, Inu-Yasha-Sama," Rin replied with a slight smile.

Inu-Yasha blushed bright red with embarrassment as he struggled with his emotions. He had never been complimented often, so it was hard for him to deal with. It was always "_You ditry hanyou or baka! ...and Koga's farvorite, Inu-Kuro." _A few moments passed as he struggled to form a response before he just tilted his head towards the side and grumbled, "Feh!"

Sesshomaru watched the interaction of Inu-Yasha's pack and felt a bit of pride for his brother. For one so young, to be able to form a pack was a great accomplishment. It showed the Western Lord that Inu-Yasha had more of their father in him that he had first thought. Shifting slightly, Sesshomaru sheathed Tensaiga, turned his gaze towards his brothers future mate and called, "Miko, I wish to test to see if you still have your spiritual abilities."

Kagome stiffened with irritation at being addressed in such a way and growled, "My name is not, Miko. Its Kagome. I would thank you to please address me so."

"Wak!" Jaken squawked in surprise before yelling at the Miko, "How dare you address my lord so disrespectfully!"

"Jaken!" Sesshomaru growled quietly but, the toad was too wrapped up in his tirade that he didn't even hear him. In a near by shaded area, Rin rolled her eyes at the toads behavior before glancing towards her mates slowly darkening expression. It looked like Sesshomaru was about to kill him again and maybe this time he wouldn't revive him with his fathers sword, the Tensaiga. Coming to a split second decision, Rin scanned the ground quickly, then grinned in triumph as she hefted her find and threw it straight at the toads head. The rock connected beautifully with a loud hollow thunk! It was sounds like that, that made Rin wonder if the toads head was completely empty. But his reaction was very satisfying as Jaken squawked, "Aiiii! Who dared throw that..."

"Jaken!" Sesshomaru growled.

At the sound of his masters voice the toad demon froze while inwardly he cringed and answered with much dread, "Aye, Milord?"

"Shut up," Sesshomaru growled again before threw a stone at the toads head, effectively knocking him out. Then,he turned his attention back towards his brothers future mate and smiled, slightly. He found her attitude to be quite refreshing. It was good that his brother found someone who could put up with him. If he was a good judge in character, Sesshomaru would bet that Kagome would rule their den with an iron fist. Turning his focus back towards the situation at hand, he glanced around the clearing to see everyone waiting with baited breath to see what his reaction would be and he chuckled, "Alright, Ka..go..me," he tried out her name on his tongue, and found that he quite liked it. It was a strange but, beautiful name. "Come. I want you to try to attack me with your claws but, focus your miko energy on them like you do with your bow."

Everyone let out their breath in relief. They were glad that Sesshomaru hadn't taken offense at Kagome's response to him. But, out of everyone in the group, It was Inu-Yasha who was the most relieved, "_Thank, Kami he didn't kill her for talking to him like that. I remember one time when I was just a pup where he killed a villager for talking to him like that."_

"Um...alright," Kagome bit her upper lip lightly as she rose to her feet, and before everyone could blink, she had launched her attack. Sparks flew from her claws as they crackled with unimaginable power but, Kagome paid it no heed as she pressed her attack. Her speed, she had learned earlier, was a great advantage; because of her small size, she was able to place herself in front of Sesshomaru before he could blink. She raised her arm and connected...

Sesshomaru had thought that he was prepared for when his brothers mate would attack but, she proved him wrong with the amount of speed she was currently using. "She must have been holding back before during training," he thought as he quickly dodged to the side while wrapping his arm in the folds of his Kimono. Quickly, he brought it up and blocked the next blow with his protected arm; watching as her miko energy flared and fought against his youki to gain the upper hand. Nodding in satisfaction, Sesshomaru stepped back, nodding slightly, he slowly made his way towards Rin's side, and murmured,"That is enough. You have proved to me that you still have your powers. However, if I have judged it correctly, you have become more powerful."

Kagome blinked in surprise as he managed to block her attack while at the same time, he managed to avoid being purified by her miko powers. "My powers have grown? That's good...but, I don't have any formal training!" she moaned in despair.

"Kagome, " Miroku said as he stood and made his way over towards her, clawed hand outstretched. When he reached her side, he took hold of her right hand and brought it up for inspection while he continued, "I think that with your new demon powers, you are able to call your miko powers up at will...after all, you can do it when you focus your powers into your arrows."

"Yeah!" Shippo interjected as he ran on all fours towards them. When he reached their side, he leaped straight up to land on Kagome's shoulder. Bracing himself with one tiny clawed hand on Kagome's ear, he leaned forward to meet her gaze and continued, "I know you can do it. I've seen you do it many times before, so it shouldn't be any different...except this time you focus your powers on your claws."

Sango made her way over as well and said, "Shippo and Miroku are right. The way Sesshomaru had you draw your powers and place them into your claws is exactly the same as when you place it into your arrows...you just have to will it to happen and focus."

As Sesshomaru sat down beside Rin as she absently stroked the fire cat's fur, he listened as Inu-Yasha's friends encourage the Miko and thought, "The Monk and the Kitsune have managed to figure out exactly what I was trying to do to get Kagome to use her miko powers. Now, the only problem I see, is how to keep the secret that Inu-Yasha and the rest of his pack have turned into full blooded dog demons from Naraku" Sesshomaru, sighed.. So far, he had run several scenarios through his mind but, only one seemed to be plausible enough to work, that one required the use of some strong magic. He would have to ask his brother's mate if she knew of a miko well versed him her art. With that thought in mind, Sesshomaru relaxed against the same tree that Rin was leaning on and coughed quietly to get the their attention. They immediately stopped their discussion and faced him; Kagome was the first one to inquire, "You wanted to say something, Lord Sesshomaru?"

"Hnnn," he replied, nodding his head slightly. Frowning for but a moment, he then gestured for them to all take a seat. As they sat, each facing him, he voiced his concerns, "As you know...you have all been turned into full blooded dog demons...excluding the fox kit." He paused, eyed each individual as they nodded their heads in agreement before he continued,"This is a fact that we know. However, our enemy, Naraku does not. So, we must find a way to keep this secret and use it to our advantage in the final battle."

Sango leaned forward and smiling, she voiced her opinion,"Yes. If we could somehow use some type of illusion to make us look and feel like normal humans, then that will be a great advantage!"

"I must agree with you, Sango," Miroku replied as he slowly inched his hand towards her rear end.

Sango frowned, irritably; some new sense told her that something was heading straight for her rear end. Not giving it a thought as to what it was exactly, since she already knew, she cracked her knuckles, raised her hand threateningly, bared her fangs and growled, "If you move that hand one more inch towards my bottom, I will personally remove it with my new claws!"

Miroku froze and replied, "But Sango, I was just going to remove the giant caterpillar crawling up to your back."

Sango eyed him suspiciously for a moment as Miroku gave her the most innocent expression; it was the kind of expression that just shouted, not guilty. However, since Sango knew the monk very well, it failed to win her over and she quipped, "Yeah, right...and I'm not a dog demon anymore."

"Ahem...yes, well," Miroku cleared his throat while at the same time, he swiftly removed his hand from the vicinity of her posterior and continued to talk, "I believe that if we used a combination of Miko and Kitsune powers, we might be able to accomplish this. Keade is the only one who is well versed in the use of her powers but, I'm not sure that Shippo is able to project his illusions onto other beings other than himself."

"Hey! I can too!" the fox kit protested, with a pouting expression; crossing his arms he tilted his nose up in the air and continued, "You guys just never asked me to do it."

"Yeah right! I'm not sure he can if you ask me," Inu-Yasha snorted, dubiously as he eyed the tiny fox-kit. "Why don't you show us?"

Rin and the fire cat, Kilala watched the monk and slayer interact with much interest. Rin figured that since she had somehow managed to grow up into an adult, she had better start acting like one and for that to happen, she had to watch the adults interact and learn do behave. But, for some odd reason, one that Rin still had to figure out, the monk kept groping the Slayer. Cocking her head, Rin furrowed her brows in puzzlement before shrugging her shoulders as she came to her own conclusion, "I guess he likes her and this is the only way he knows how to show her but, Rin thinks it's strange. Why doesn't he just kiss her?" Turning her gaze towards her lord, she watched him as he watched the rest of the pack as they discussed their next step and thought, "Rin will just have to ask Lord Sesshomaru later." Glancing away from Sesshomaru, she just managed to catch the end of Inu-Yasha's comment and decided to encourage the kit,"I'm sure you can do anything you put your mind to, Shippo."

Shippo beamed, happily at his new found friend and replied, "Alright! I'll do it!" With those words hanging in the air, the tiny fox-kit concentrated all of his magic on his foster mother and in his exited state he replied, "Just watch Momma and see!"

The others heard his slip of the tongue but, turned their attention towards Kagome and saw the small smile on her face. To them, it appeared as if Kagome approved. Kagome noticed their wide eyed expressions and whispered, "It's Ok, I think of him as my pup anyway." Then suddenly, she felt a slight tingling sensation all over her body, to her own eyes, she could see no difference but, when she glanced at the others, she noticed their expression as well as heard their response,"Way to go Shippo!"

"Oh my god, Kagome! You look just like you did when you were a human!" Sango exclaimed, excitedly.

"I can't believe the runt did it!" Inu-Yasha exclaimed, he was very surprised but, inwardly, he was proud of the kit. If anyone dared to probe his feelings for the kit, they would find that he thought of the kit as his own pup as well as Kagome's. His instincts told him that if he was to get anywhere with Kagome, he would have to treat the kit accordingly or she would kill him.

"Hey!" Shippo wailed, indignantly. He hated to be called a runt. One of these days, he would hit his growth spurt and they would see just who was the runt, then.

"Now, Inu-Yasha, that is not a nice thing to say about Shippo," Miroku replied.

Inu-Yasha crossed his arms and replied, "Feh!"

"Well now we know that it's possible, let's go see Keade, "Kagome replied, happily.

"Good. We will leave in the morning," Sesshomaru interjected, before closing his eyes to get some much needed rest and effectively ending the discussion.

"I don't know about you guys, but I'm hungry," Shippo quipped.

* * *

Drip...drip...drip the sound echoed hollowly as the drops water hit stone. 

As Kagura slowly became aware of her surroundings, her gaze was met with the sight of darkness. Blinking, she tried to clear her vision but, nothing worked. The only thing visible was a small ray of moonlight in one corner. Frowning, she thought, "Where am I. What happened?" It was then, that she remembered. She had been hot on the trail of Sesshomaru's ward, Rin and had managed to fight her but, somehow she had lost their battle. Groaning in despair, Kagura tried to shift her aching limbs but, found that her arms and legs were bound in a most uncomfortable position. Tugging at them, she tried to bring them back into a more comfortable position but, she could not. It was then that she realized that she hung suspended in mid air in an 'X' position. "What is this?" she growled, tugging at her arms. The sound of chains rattling caused the wind demoness to pause. Biting her lip, she pulled her right arm once more and was met with the same sound. Frantically, she pulled and tugged but to no avail, she was trapped!

Suddenly, a shadow detached itself from the wall and moved closer towards her. Gasping with panic, Kagura yelled, "Who's there! Why have you bound me in chains!"

The sound of dark, evil laughter met her ears, "Hahahaha!" before the shadow stepped closer and moved around her until he was at her back. Then suddenly, Kagura felt a pair of hands grasping the cloth of her Kimono before a violent tug jarred her body. Her ears were met with a tearing sound as the cloth was ripped off of her body. Shivers of fear raced down her spine and she struggled frantically to release herself from her bonds. Then, she felt a hand slowly caress her back from the bottom towards her right shoulder. Then suddenly they sank deep into her flesh and he slashed her back to ribbons while growling, "You have failed me again, Kagura!"

The wind sorceress screamed in agony," Ahhhhhhhh!" as she felt her back being split open like a ripe melon. The wounds bled like nothing before, Kagura could feel the blood as it ran in rivulets down her back to drip upon the floor. When it finally registered who had her bound, she trembled in fear and gasped out, "Master Naraku!...please!"

"Don't bother to plead for your life, Kagura! You have failed me for the last time and I will take my payment out of your hide!" he growled as his right arm morphed into a long tentacle like limb lined with spikes. Then, before the wind sorceress could even begin to comprehend her situation, he began whip her with vicious strikes meant to induce enormous amounts of pain.

Kagura's eyes widened at the first strike and a small gasp escaped her lips,"Master!" She opened her mouth to explain her findings but, before she could, more blows began to rain upon her mutilated back and she screamed in agony,"Aaaaaahhhhhhh!" The torture continued throughout the night until she could no longer scream but, hung limply. The chains were the only thing holding her up.

Through the haze of the pain that wracked her tortured body, she felt the blows stop. Slowly, she took stock of her injuries and knew that they were potentially life threatening if she still had possession of her heart. Suddenly, movement from the corner of her swollen eyes caught her attention. Focusing her blurry vision, Kagura could just make out the form of her master as he seemed to swell and grow. When he came close enough for her to get a good look, she mewed weakly at the sight of his body. Kagura cringed as one of his many tentacles caressed her body in an almost frightening manner, before she was violently ripped her lose from her chains. "I shall not longer be troubled by your failures since you will no longer exist," she vaguely heard him whisper as he brought her closer towards his monstrous form until she was flush against his body. She could feel herself being drawn back into him and could no longer feel her legs. Too week to struggle, she hung limply in his grasp while the horror her situation registered and she whimpered, "M-master please don't! I have news!...please don't!"

Naraku ignored her pleas and continued to draw her back into his body. Her fear was so stimulating and he was enjoying this way too much but, her words made him pause just at the apex of her shoulders until only her head, arms and legs remained visible. "It better be important Kagura and if it is, then I may consider sparing your worthless life!" he growled as his eyes flashed red with anger.

Kagura gasped in relief and then began to explain her findings. Once she was finished her master murmured,"So. Sesshomaru has a weakness now...excellent." Then, his gaze landed upon her once more and he smiled. The sight of her master smiling that evil smile made Kagura quake when she read his true intention in his eyes, and them he spoke, "Well that is good news. But unfortunately, I no longer have use for you."

Kagura began struggling in earnest and whimpered as she felt herself being drawn in further. Tears began to drip down her cheeks as she began screaming in terror,"NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

* * *

An: Well that's it for this chapter! As I had mentioned in my first not at the top of the page, My writing will possibly stop for a while since school is more important.

Now, to answer some reviews:

1. No, I'm not going to kill off Inu-Yasha or the gang. I wan't this to be a happy story.

2. Yes, I'm going to have them go to the village. As you have read in this chapter, they're goingh to need Keade's help in performing the concealment spell.

3. About Naraku's laughter. It anoys me too and I'll try not to use it too much.

Thanks mina for all of your support!


	16. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

They had been walking for over a week now, and so far they had not seen even a hint of any type of civilization. It was then, that it dawned on Kagome's mind that Sesshomaru was deliberately avoiding contact with humans. During that time, they had come to accept, and even trust the Western Lord enough to reveal that Kagome was from the future. He had been skeptical at first but, then when he became used to the idea, he had shown a great deal of curiosity. It had taken them most of the day and part of the night to explain all the things that were mentioned. Since there was so much of it, and Sesshomaru had wanted her to explain in detail how things worked and how they were built while they traveled. It seemed that he was never satisfied enough to just let her be. "Kagome," Sesshomaru said as he digested the information of how a car worked and what it was exactly. Kagome had just finished explaining it to him and it left him with many more questions. So he cleared his throat and asked, "Can you explain to me again how that atomic bomb weapon works?" He was extremely curious as to how an atomic bomb worked than anything else. If his hunch was right, it didn't bode well for demons living in Japan.

"_Arrrrrrrg!" _Kagome cried mentally. He just didn't stop. Ok, so she could see that he wanted to learn as much as he could about her time since demons had long life spans but, come on. She had already answered over one thousand questions and according to her last count, he had just made it a total of one thousand and one! Her head was spinning and she could feel a migraine forming! She just couldn't take it anymore, and as far as Kagome was concerned that was the final straw! She was tired, hungry and just plain annoyed! Huffing quietly, she debated whether or not she should give him a piece of her mind and tell him to shut up but, just as she was about to speak, she froze as she felt that familiar tingling sensation in the back of her mind.

Inu-Yasha, ever attuned to Kagome's every move paused in his conversation with Miroku and eyed her for a second before swiftly making his way towards her. Grasping her shoulders, the hanyou turned demon inquired, "What is it, Kagome? Do you sense another jewel shard?

"No. I don't just sense one, I sense two, and they seem to be moving really fast." Frowning for a moment, Kagome tried to remember what it was that she was forgetting when finally it dawned on her, "It's Koga!"

Sesshomaru frowned at her exclamation before coming to a split second decision. Sighing he grumbled mentally, _I just know I'm going to regret this!"_, he stepped forward, quickly bent down and ripped several strange looking plants from the ground. Turning, he began crushing them between his hand, he barked, "Everyone quick, cover yourselves with this to block your scent and tuck your tails inside your clothing. We can not risk even one soul, other than ourselves, finding out that you've been turned into demons or it might jeopardize our plans."

"He's got a point and I think it's a great idea to keep this quiet," Miroku replied as he hurriedly began tucking his tail inside of his make-shift hakama. "But, I'm unsure of how to explain the change in my hair color….."

"You could just tell him that you were hit with a strange spell when we were hunting for the shards and it made your hair grow and turn white with lavender streaks…..or we could tell him that it's hair dye from Kagome's home and you accidentally got it on you when you were being chased by Inu-Yasha," Sango interjected helpfully.

"I like the second one," Shippo replied with a grin.

"You would," Miroku replied with a wry grin. "I should think that you would have me say that I was peeking on the girls again while they were taking a bath. But, what am I going to do with the length of my hair...cut it?"

"You got it!" the fox kit replied, grinning.

Miroku sighed dejectedly and murmured, "Very well." Swiftly, he grasped his long mane of hair in one clawed hand; slicing through it several inches below the tie to his pony tail. "I really liked the way I look with long hair...I think Sango really likes it," he complained with a dejected sigh. Earlier in the week, Sango had sat with him to talk and somehow she had ended up playing with the long strands; continuously wrapping them around her fingers and running her claws through his hair with a dreamy expression in her eyes. It was then and there, that Miroku had decided that he wouldn't cut his hair.

"Feh! You shouldn't worry about your hair, it'll grow back by tomorrow morning," Inu-Yasha replied with a slight smirk to his lips.

"Oh thank Budda!" Miroku exclaimed with a joyful expression. He was very happy that it would grow back. _"Now, Sango can play with my hair any time she wants!"_ he thought devilishly, before turning his attention back towards Inu-Yasha's brother, watching as Sesshomaru eyed the girls for a moment before focusing on Kagome, "I don't suppose that you have something that will also help to disguise your demon markings and scent?"

Grinning with excitement, Kagome chirped, "Yup! I have just the thing!" before she began digging in her bag for her ever trusty concealer and foundation.

Inu-Yasha watched as Kagome dug through her back pack to find her magic face paint, before reaching out a clawed hand and plucking the plants from his brothers hand. Taking a tentative sniff, he began hacking in disgust, "Arg! That stuff is awful! It smells like shit!" The former hanyou glared at his older brother and asked, "What the fuck is this shit called?"

"I believe my mother called it stink weed," Sesshomaru replied, wrinkling his nose as he took a tentative sniff of his hands. His nose began to burn from the noxious fumes and he thought ruefully, _"This Sesshomaru shouldn't have done that...kami that stinks!", _before kneeling on the ground and fervently wiping them in the grass to rid them of the stench. When that didn't work, he growled and began cursing fluently while the rest of the pack watched in silent awe at his uncharacteristic behavior. It was a few minutes before he noticed he had their undivided attention focused on him and growled, "What?"

"Oh, its just that we've never seen you do that before," Kagome replied with a giggle. "It's very unlike you, since you're usually so ...so," she waved her hands in the air for emphasis while searching for the correct word to use.

"Calm," Shippo interjected, helpfully.

"No. That's not the word I was looking for," Kagome replied, frowning.

"Stodicly cold!" Inu-Yasha replied with a grin.

"Yes! Your usually very stodic and cold...I guess you could say that your not acting lordly right now."

Sesshomaru frowned a moment while searching through his mind as to why he had acted that way. It was then that he realized that he felt comfortable with his surroundings and the pack. The feelings were somewhat familiar to him but, it had been a long time since he had felt them, so he had trouble recognizing them. Carelessly shrugging his shoulders, he snorted and muttered an uncharacteristic, "Feh!" before continuing to wipe the disgusting scent from his hands.

Inu-Yasha and the rest of the pack gaped at his response for a few moments before returning to the task at hand. Quickly, he and Miroku covered themselves with the stinkweed and their markings with concealer, while Kagome and Sango took care of themselves. Turning towards the kit, Kagome cried, "Quickly, Shippo, the spell!" Nodding he head, Shippo fished a leaf out of his vest and concentrated on both Sango and Kagome's normal appearance. He had just finished the task when a she-wolf with red hair ran into their midst.

At the sight of the demon's face Kagome gasped, "Ayame!"

* * *

She ran through the forest with tears streaming down her cheeks, and no thought of where she was heading, her only conscious thoughts were about the ache in her heart from Koga's words. _"If I'm so unacceptable, why did he claim me as his mate?" _Ayame thought as she stumbled over a rock before righting herself and continuing her mad dash through the forest. Ever since she was little, she had cared for him and she still cared so much it hurt but, his thoughts were for that Miko, Kagome. "Why does he do this to me?" Ayame sobbed, quietly while pausing to look around to get her bearings.

Choosing a new direction, she continued to run. Maybe if she ran, she could distance herself from this pain. _"Why do I still persist on caring for him...no that's not the word I'm looking for,... I still love him. But, now, with his mark on my shoulder, I'm tied to that faithless wolf for life and he doesn't love me!" _she thought while sobbing uncontrollably. The pain of that thought was excruciating.

Suddenly, she burst into a clearing and before she realized her situation, Ayame slammed directly into Inu-Yasha, knocking them both to the ground with a loud, thud. _"Ite!"_ she groaned as the pain finally registered.

"Oow!" The lump beneath her groaned before it shifted and began cursing, "What the fuck did you do that for ya bitch!...get the fuck off me!"

Blushing furiously, Ayame was about to apologize when a voice she recognized as Kagome's yelled her name. Whipping around, the she wolf sniffled and wiped her eyes to clear the last remnants of her tears so she could see better. Kagome noticed immediately and ran to her side to engulf her in a comforting hug, "What happened Ayame? Why are you crying?"

That was all it took for the dam on the she wolf's emotions broke into a million pieces, and she began to sob uncontrollably as she explained her situation.

As Ayame wound down and began wiping her eyes, Kagome frowned, she couldn't believe that Koga could be such a self centered jerk! Just as she was about to voice her feelings on the matter Koga ran into the clearing, completely ignoring everyone around him when he spotted his target, the worry melted from his face as he cried, "There you are!" Quickly, he ran forward and grasping her shoulders, he panted, "Ayame! You've got to believe me, I didn't mean it!"

Lifting one clawed hand, Ayame smacked his right hand off of her shoulder and shouted, "Liar!" Putting all of her strength into her arms, she desperately pushed against his grip and growled, "Let me go!"

Completely focused on getting his mate to acknowledge his claim on her and to forgive him, he tightened his grip. So desperate was he to make her believe him, Koga let his instincts take complete control and bent closer towards her face, gently licking her cheek while letting lose small whimpering noises. When he received no response from his bitch, he began to whine and nuzzle her under the chin, "Please forgive me, mate. I didn't mean to say those words. You are my mate and I can take no other. If you refuse me, then I will die from a one sided bond."

Inu-Yasha and the rest of the pack watched the proceedings with shock written plain upon their faces. Kagome on the other hand thought, _"Wow! this is better than the soap operas back home!...Come-on Ayame! Say you forgive him!" _Kagome waited with baited breath as she watched the female wolf demon.

But, unfortunately for her, Inu-Yasha just had to open his mouth at an inappropriate time, "Feh, stupid wolf's gonna fuck up. He deserves it if by what Ayame told us is true."

Kagome glared at her companion and hissed quietly, "Shut up and let her talk to him alone. If they ignore us then maybe we can get out of here without them noticing the changes in our appearance and scent."

"Yes, ototo-chan, I agree with your mate, " Sesshomaru replied as he stepped forward, grasped Inu-Yasha by the shoulder and squeezed hard. But only enough to let his brother get the hint.

Growling low in his throat at the pain, Inu-Yasha conceded and replied, "Alright, dammit. I want them to go away too but, the bastard deserves it……especially if he hurt Ayame's feelings.

"Shhhhhh! Be quiet and watch!" Sango hissed.

"Why? What's so important?" Miroku inquired, curiously.

"Just wait, and you will see one of the most importantly kept secrets of the wolf demon tribe," Sesshomaru replied as he jerked his chin towards the two wolf demons.

* * *

Her emotions at war with themselves, Ayame found it difficult to judge the sincerity of his words. On one hand, she knew that he craved the Miko's attention. But, on the other hand, Koga had marked her and his words about their mate bond were completely true. If they failed to reconcile their differences, then Koga would die. And it was up to her to pass judgement. A small part of her heart pleaded for her to be reasonable and believe him. But, after so many betrayals from the wolf prince, Ayame was leery of believing the sincerity of his words. But, her heart had never lied to her, so after a while with Koga still led by instinct to nuzzle her chin and beg for forgiveness. Ayame's expression smoothed out, and with a small smile, her eyes flashed red, she had made her decision but, first she would make him pay! Lifting her arms, Ayame grasped Koga by the top of his head and tilted it to get a better angle. Growling loudly and viciously at the male who wished to be her mate, Ayame watched as the wolf prince froze in complete submission, his vulnerable neck exposed to her sharp fangs and claws.

Koga waited with baited breath for her decision, _"I never thought that I would ever be in this type of situation but, it's my own fault. I betrayed Ayame when I denounced her for Kagome right after I marked her! If I can get Ayame to forgive me, then she will mark me in return to complete the bond."_ He knew that she had the right to kill him. It was the law of the pack for wolf demons. Even though he was an alpha male, it was the female's right to chose her mate or kill him if he betrayed her. Returning his focus to his surroundings, Koga could feel her heated breath upon his neck but, he didn't dare move. Even though, every instinct within him told him to break away, he pushed it down into the deepest recesses of his soul. The only visible aspect that betrayed his struggle was his red eyes as they flashed between their normal color and back again.

Suddenly, he felt the prick of fangs upon his jugular and as they moved down towards the vulnerable spot in his throat, his eyes widened with fear while he shivered and thought, _"Oh, god, she doesn't believe me!"_ Closing his eyes in defeat, Koga made a sound at the back of his throat while lifting his chin higher to expose more of his throat to her fangs so she could deliver the death blow swiftly. Her jaws suddenly clamped down upon his windpipe and he gasped for breath. It was a struggle for the wolf prince to breathe and not move but, he was determined to win her over and didn't move an inch even as his face began to turn blue. He was still determined even when his vision turned dark and he knew no more.

* * *

"Oh my god! She's killing him!" Kagome gasped as she watched the shocking scene unfold. Koga, the leader of the brown wolf tribe literally hung from Ayame's jaws by his throat. He wasn't even putting up a fight! Turning towards her companions, Kagome cried, "Someone do something!"

"We can't interfere !" Inu-Yasha growled.

"But, why? She's killing him!" Kagome pointed towards the pair and gasped at the sight of Koga's complexion as it was swiftly turning blue from the lack of air. "Why isn't he fighting her to make her release him!"

Sesshomaru stepped in front of Kagome and replied, "It is her right to kill him for his betrayal. It's the law of the wolf pack. If Koga moves even one inch, she will tear out his throat. However, if he stays completely still, she may yet spare him and grant him her forgiveness."

"Huh?" Kagome frowned in confusion and replied, "I don't understand."

"She's testing him," Sango replied while never taking her eyes off of Koga and Ayame. "It may seem like it would be the male wolf demons that run the pack but, in wolf demon society, it is the females who control the pack and who are the dominant ones. The males are the warriors and hunters but, it is the females who carry out the judgments for crimes committed against the tribe. Trust me, Koga knows what he's doing."

"Ooh. I guess I understand but," Kagome started to say when suddenly, she heard the sound of running feet and two voices shouting Koga's name. Only one second had passed by when Ginta and Hakaku entered the clearing. Kagome watched as they froze immediately when they beheld the sight of their leader held by the throat in Ayame's jaws. When Ayame's red eyes turned towards them, Kagome and the rest of her pack gasped in shock as Ginta and Hakaku immediately lowered themselves to the ground and began whimpering in submission, begging her to forgive their leader. By now, Koga's face was almost purple from the lack of air. Slowly, Ayame loosened her hold on his windpipe to allow the wolf prince to breath, and before he could regain his senses, she swiftly moved her fangs towards his shoulder and bit him viciously, breaking the skin and effectively marking him as her mate.

"Um, what just happened?" Kagome whispered to Inu-Yasha.

"She forgave the bastard but, she let him know who's boss by almost killing him," Inu-Yasha growled, a frown furrowing his brow. He just couldn't understand what it was that bitch saw in the wolf prince.

"You mean Koga-kun is still alive?" Kagome asked.

"Yep! Dumb luck if you ask me!" Inu-Yasha replied as he crossed his arms over his chest and waited for the stupid wolf price to wake up.

The first thing Koga became aware of was how much his throat hurt from having it almost crushed by his mate. The next thing he acknowledged was how hard it was for him to draw in air but, he knew that his windpipe would heal with time. Slowly, he opened his eyes to take in his surroundings but, he immediately froze when he beheld the sight of his mates red eyes and her bloodied fangs as she snarled at him. _"Where did all that blood come from?" _he asked himself before he suddenly became aware of a throbbing pain in his shoulder. Ayame snarled again and he immediately whimpered in submission, telling her without words that he would obey her. Slowly, the red in her eyes began to fade back to their normal green as she knelt down towards his face. Once comfortably settled, she brought her face close to his and licked his chin and breathed out quietly, "Mine! My mate."

There! That was the signal Koga had been waiting for, _"Thank god! She's accepted me and if by the pain in my shoulder is right, then she's marked me as well but, I'd better be very careful around her if I want to keep living." _Slowly, Koga rose to his knees, tail and chin tucked low as he slowly acknowledged her sign of forgiveness by grasping her chin gently and pressing his lips against hers in a deep and passionate kiss.

Ginta and Hakaku grinned with happiness while the wolves that had been following them howled their joy for all to hear.

* * *

"Oh geez! Quit it already!" Inu-Yasha growled in disgust as Koga continued to ravish his mate in full view of the dog demon pack.

"I think that's so romantic," Kagome replied with tears in her eyes.

"Yes, it was very exciting and its not something you see every day," Sango replied while Rin nodded her head in agreement.

"If you ask me, I think its gross," Shippo replied, eyeing the two wolf demons with a sick expression on his face.

"I think that this would be a good time to leave," Miroku suggested.

"I would agree with you monk," Sesshomaru replied as he turned on his heal and began leaving the clearing. It wasn't until they were a mile away when Inu-Yasha finally realized some important fact that he had previously forgotten, "Wait a minute! You made us put on that stink weed shit and they didn't even notice! Shit! Now, I'll never get the smell out of my clothes and hair!"

Chuckling evilly, Sesshomaru said, "Don't worry, Inu-Yasha, it will come out in about a month's time if you frequently bathe three times a day, every day."

"Aaaa Shit!"


	17. Chapter 16

Chapter 16:

As Kagome, Rin and Sango walked through the forest, they made sure to keep well ahead of the boys so the awful stench of the stinkweed was blown away from them by the breeze. However, as the noon sun rose high into the sky, the breeze suddenly died out. As one, Kagome, Sango and Rin wrinkled their noses in disgust, "Oh Kami, that stinks! It's been two days since they covered themselves in that crap and I can't stand it anymore!" Kagome growled as she covered her nose with one clawed hand.

Miroku secretly took a tentative sniff and almost passed out from the stench. It was so bad that he couldn't smell anything else. _"Oh Budda, Sango won't come near me with this stench covering me. I've got to find a stream and wash it off but, Sesshomaru said that it would take a month to wash away. I've been cursed again!"_ he thought, almost near tears because just the thought of not being able to be near his beloved Sango made him want to cry. Even Kagome and Rin were quick to avoid him when he came too close.

Sango nodded, agreeing with her friends comment before adding her own, "It's worse than the smell of rotting demon guts!"

Rin glared at the boys, Sesshomaru included and commented, "Yes. They do smell awful. Even Sesshomaru stinks bad, and its only on his hands!"

Nearby, Sesshomaru couldn't help but overhear and growled quietly but, Rin continued as if she had never heard him, "However, I smell a river nearby so they should start taking those bathes, now."

Sesshomaru growled mentally and thought, _"I knew it. I definitely regret touching that stink weed. Now, Rin won't even come near me, and the stench is only on my hands! Hell, even I can't stand the smell!" _Slowly, he altered his course so that they would intercept with the river and sighed, "I have said this before, Rin. It will take a month of washing three times a day, every day to wash this foul stench off."

"I know but, you should start now so that by the time we reach Inu-Yasha's forest, the smell will be gone," Rin replied, smiling.

At the mention of bathing Inu-Yasha gulped nervously and glanced around for an escape route. When he noticed that everyone's attention was off of him, he took a tentative step back towards the concealment of a large bush and thought, _"I can't stand taking that many bathes! I'll get sick! I've got to get out of here!" _Once out of sight, hequickly tensed his muscles and made a break for it.

"Hnn," The Western Lord replied, voicing his agreement with Rin. Suddenly, a brief flash of red caught his attention. Turning, he managed to catch sight of his younger brother fleeing from the clearing. Growling in annoyance, Sesshomaru yelled, "Get back here, Inu-Yasha and take your bath like a demon! Stop acting like a pup!"

"Hell no!" Inu-Yasha yelled while leaping upwards into the branches to tree-hop his way through the forest.

The rest of the group watched in shock as the Lord of the Western Lands clenched his teeth together and growled deeply in annoyance, "I will not go through this again."

Sango frowned in puzzlement at his words and murmured, "Again? You mean he's done this before?"

Sesshomaru glanced at Sango, crossed his arms and growled, "Yes. Even as a pup, he hated taking bathes."

Shippo and Rin started laughing uncontrollably. It took a while before they were able to regain control of themselves before Shippo muttered, "I can believe that, especially if he'd smell like a wet dog afterwards." Turning, he glanced back at the Western Lord and he noticed that it was obvious that Sesshomaru was more than annoyed. Turning towards Kagome, Sesshomaru started pacing back and forth and muttered, "Why does he have to be so obstinate?"

Kagome shrugged and opened her mouth," Well he…..", but, she didn't get to finish her sentence because Sesshomaru interrupted her.

"I'm tired of chasing him down!" Sesshomaru paused, bared his teeth and was about to continued his tirade when suddenly, he turned his attention towards the rest of the group and growled, "Well, don't just stand there….we need to catch him! Now, move!"

"Right!" everyone yelled, regaining their senses. Then they ran off into the forest, following Inu-Yasha's aromatic stench. "Oh Kami! I really hope we catch him because if we can't catch him I'll just have to plug my nose up for a month!" Shippo panted as he ran beside Miroku.

"Ah, but I see the reasoning behind taking bathes. If you stink, then the females won't come near you. Also," Miroku paused as he jumped over a log and then continued his reasoning, "The more we bathe, the quicker the stench will disappear, and Sango will let me get within a few feet of her instead of standing on the other side of the clearing, or being more than fifteen feet away from me, and upwind."

As Kagome quickly outpaced the boys, she spotted a flash of red in the trees and yelled, "I just don't understand why he doesn't want to take a bath! I swear! If I have to smell that disgusting stench for more than a month I'll….I'll, well I don't know what I'll do but, it won't be good for him!"

"Kagome," Sango said as she came abreast of her pack mate. "Why don't you sit him to stop him in his tracks?"

Blinking at her own forgetfulness, Kagome stopped in her tracks and replied, "Oops, I forgot!" When they heard Kagome's comment, Miroku, Sango, Rin and Shippo stopped running and groaned, "You forgot!"

"Hehehe," Kagome placed her hand behind her head and giggled; while sheepishly replying, "Yeah, sorry."

While this conversation was going on, Sesshomaru kept sight of his fleeing brother and willed his legs go faster. "Inu-Yasha, you had better stop this childish behavior or you won't like the consequences," Sesshomaru growled, loud enough for his brother to hear.

"No way am I taking that many bathes!" the former hanyou yelled, while dodging his brother's clawed hands. Turning, he dashed off in another direction, weaving in and out of the trees.

Sesshomaru snarled irritably before heading off in another direction to try to corner his brother between the other pack members. With his highly attuned demon senses, he knew the exact location of the pack. It wouldn't be long now before Inu-Yasha was caught. After a few more moments, Sesshomaru could see that Inu-Yasha was just within his reach and suddenly, he lunged but, just before his fingers could grasp Inu-Yasha's gi , the former hanyou dodged, and managed to get away. Muttering a few expletives Sesshomaru tried a new tactic, "If you don't stop, this Sesshomaru will destroy every Ramen cup your mate has left in her traveling bag."

Eyes widening in horror, Inu-Yasha quickly debated what was worse, losing his ramen or taking bathes. His decision reached, he yelled, "She's not my mate! So, go ahead! I refuse to take that many bathes!" Sesshomaru's eyes widened in surprise, he knew how much his brother loved to eat the strange food but, to turn it down meant that to the former hanyou was not stopping for anything.

"Thinks he can trick me, does he…well it won't work," Inu-Yasha muttered as his eyes searched for another avenue of escape. Finding it, he tensed his muscles and leaped towards another branch when suddenly, a loud yell echoed through the forest, "SIIIIIT!"

Eyes widening to the size of saucers as he recognized the command that activated his rosary, Inu-Yasha yelled, "Awww Shit!" He could feel the strong pull of the beads pulling him inevitably towards the ground. When he landed, he created a much larger crater than before. Once he was able to pull his head out of the dirt, he yelled out, "Kagome that's not fair!"

Ginning evilly at the sudden turn of events, Sesshomaru silently thanked Inu-Yasha's future mate for her quick thinking as he landed beside his brother in a more graceful and controlled fall. Kneeling down, he grasped onto Inu-Yasha's Gi and quickly lifted him off the ground. Turning his amber gaze towards his brother, Sesshomaru raised one eyebrow and asked, "And where do you think you're running off to, little brother? Don't you want to wash away this disgusting stench?"

Crossing his arms, Inu-Yasha scowled and replied, "Yeah. But, that many bathes will kill me!"

"May I remind you that you're a full demon now……and that it's impossible to get sick if you take that many bathes."

"I don't care. I don't like getting wet because it makes me smell like wet dog," Inu-Yasha replied with a scowl.

"Have you ever used any soap plants when you wash?" Shippo asked, curiously.

Cocking his head, Inu-Yasha asked, "Umm. What's a soap plant look like?"

"You don't know what a soap plant looks like? Jaken asked, surprised at the lack of knowledge the former hanyou possessed.

Growling irritably, Inu-Yasha yelled, "No! I don't know that! I was just a pup when dad died, and then my mother not long after. Neither of them showed me what it was! That was his job, "Inu-Yasha yelled as he pointed over his shoulder towards Sesshomaru before continuing his rant, "Besides, after I was kicked out of mothers village, I was too buys trying to stay alive when other demons were trying to kill me!"

"He has a point there," Miroku replied while leaning against a tree.

"How old were you when your mother died, Inu-Yasha?" Kagome asked, curiously.

"Five, I think." Crossing his arms, he grunted irritably when he noticed that he was still several feet off the ground and hanging by his gi. Turning his head, he glared over his shoulder at his brother and growled, "You can put me down now, Sesshomaru."

Sango stepped forward and replied, "I thought that dog demons started training their pups at the age of six?"

"Yes. They do but, the white dogs don't . We start a little later. I was supposed to teach Inu-Yasha but, due to my aversion to his hanyou blood and my youth, I refused. I regret it now since, you are well aware of the end result." Sesshomaru replied while lifting Inu-Yasha higher in a gesture meant to point out to the others just whom it was he was referring to.

"You better not be referring to me!" Inu-Yasha grumbled as he struggled to get down but, Sesshomaru had him in just the right position so that he was unable to even reach him with his feet or claws. "Put me down!"

"No," Sesshomaru replied, completely ignoring him and continued, "If I had taken over Inu-Yasha's training then, he would have more manners but, as it stands, he acts just like our father with his lack of manners and brash ways." Shaking his head to clear some unwanted memories, Sesshomaru began walking in the direction of the river.

Seeing this, Inu-Yasha's ears lay flat against his skull, a clear sign to all who cared to look, that the former hanyou was displeased. This spurred him to struggle harder but, no matter how much he tried, he just couldn't get himself loose. Inu-Yasha was so mad that it didn't occur to him that he could untie his Gi and make a break for it.

"Stop that," Sesshomaru growled as he tightened his grip on his brothers Gi. _"Damn. This Sesshomaru may have to ask for assistance in restraining Inu-Yasha,"_ The older dog demon thought as he struggled to maintain his grip upon his wildly struggling brother. It was then that he came to the realization that his brother took more after their father than he did and thought,_ "Even though Inu-Yasha is younger than this Sesshomaru, his life in the wild has made him stronger while this Sesshomaru resembles mother."_

Kagome noticed the amount of effort it took for the Western Lord to keep Inu-Yasha from getting free and called out, "Miroku, I think you should help Sesshomaru get him to the river, otherwise he just might escape."

"Alright," Miroku replied, grinning as he moved into position. Just a few days ago he had found out that he could still use his sutras. It happened when they came upon a horde of minor demons. It was out of habit that he had drawn them in battle. His ability to use his holy powers couldn't have been more of a shock.

Sesshomaru noticed the former monk come up beside him and inclined his head, curiously. Since Inu-Yasha's back was facing the former monk, Miroku gestured silently towards Inu-Yasha while lifting his staff, some twine and a few sutras and grinned, evilly.

"Hnn," Sesshomaru replied, smirking. He was beginning to like the former monk. Quicker than Inu-Yasha knew what had happened to him, he was thrown into the air and unable to regain his bearings. "What the fuck!" he screamed and as he came down from his fall, his arms and legs were suddenly immobilized. He was now hanging from Miroku's staff, all four appendages bound with twine and holy seals. He blinked for a few moments as he became aware of his situation. "Hey! Let me loose or I swear you're going to get it monk!" He yelled as his temper began to boil. Never in his life had he been in such a position, he felt like a trussed buck!

"_When I get free, they're going to pay!" _Inu-Yasha thought; he pulled himself closer to the branch and began gnawing on the ropes. He was too engrossed in his task of getting himself free that he failed to scent or hear the river as they stepped out of the thick underbrush of the forest. Next thing Inu-Yasha knew was the cold feeling of river water soaking his hakama as both Sesshomaru and Miroku set him down in the deepest part of the river. "Fuck, now I'm wet!" Inu-Yasha cursed and began to struggle harder but, no matter how much he tried, he couldn't free himself from the bespelled bindings.

Miroku turned towards Kagome and asked, "Kagome-Sama, do you have any of that soap and Shampo?"

Kagome grinned and replied, "Sure I do, Miroku. Oh, and its called Shampoo, not Shampo. It's for your hair but, you may not like it since it smells like flowers."

"Aw Fuck, no!" Inu-Yasha screamed and began knowing faster on the ropes; with little success. "I refuse to smell like fucking flowers!"

"Shut up, Inu-Yasha. You have no choice in what you're going to smell like, since you refused to come willingly." Knowing that his assistance was required to hold his younger brother down, Sesshomaru began to strip of his long outer robe to reveal a simple hakama and gi; made of the best quality silks. "Besides, anything is better than this stench, bitch," Sesshomaru replied absently as he pulled the monks staff from between Inu-Yasha's arms and legs. Thankfully, the bindings were tight enough that his little brother couldn't get loose.

"What did you call me?" Kagome growled; she was slightly miffed because not only did Inu-Yasha call her a bitch but, now his brother called her one too. "I'm not a person who sleeps around, so I expect you to apologize," frowning, she crossed her arms and waited for an apology. However, when Sesshomaru glanced towards her and replied, "I'm not insulting you girl…..you are a bitch. To an Inu-Youkai, this is one of the highest complements a male dog demon will give an Inu female."

Kagome gaped at Sesshomaru while a blush painted her cheeks and replied in a diminutive whisper, "Oh." Rushing past the Western Lord, she waded into the water to help give Inu-Yasha his bath. So the day finally ended with much cursing on Inu-Yasha's behalf.

* * *

Several days later, as the group crested the remaining hill before their home village, they paused in their journey and as one, glanced towards Shippo. Kagome was the first one to voice her thoughts, "Ok, Shippo, it's time for you to work your magic. I know you've been practicing each time we passed through a village but, this time you're going to have to hold it for more than an twenty minutes." 

"Oh, um here it goes," Shippo replied; pulling out a few leaves from his vest, he concentrated upon the spell. At first, it had been difficult for the little kitsune to disguise so many of their group but, as he practiced, it became easier. He now could hold the spell for around twenty minutes but, anymore than that and it would fall apart. When he had first started out, he had managed to hold it for five minutes at a time but, it had failed miserably when they had passed through a village. It had ended up with the group making a quick break for it. Since, they didn't want to kill the humans that were chasing them, they had outrun them. Since that time, Kagome and the rest of the pack had insisted that he learn to hold his illusion spell for greater periods of time. Now, as he concentrated on the spell, he could fell his demonic powers struggling to break free of his hold. Opening his eyes, he glanced around to see if it worked.

"Great job, runt," Inu-Yasha commented after he checked to see if his markings and tail were gone. Since they were no longer visible to the human eye, Inu-Yasha breathed a sigh of relief, now he could enter the village without the worry of the villages attacking them.

"Yes, you did a good job of making us look human," Miroku commented as he leaned on his staff. "Now, lets get going before Shippo becomes too tired and looses it."

"Right, lets go," Kagome replied, grinning. Bending down, she plucked the fox kit off the ground and proceeded to run with demonic speed through the forest; heading directly towards the village. The group followed directly on her heals. They knew that the forest ended at the fields but, it was still an hours walk to the village, so running was their best option.

* * *

Old Keade worked her garden with a practiced eye as she pulled weeds, plucked dead stems and gathered vegetables for tonight's stew. Somehow, she instinctively knew that she would be making extra tonight. So she set about gathering the items she needed to prepare it. Suddenly, she sensed a demonic aurora heading directly towards her. Standing, she shielded her good eye and squinted. "Ah, they have returned," the old Miko replied as she spied the group steadily making their way towards her home. "But, I see that they have more companions with them, I best gather some more for the stew." Once finished, she hefted her basket and headed into the hut to start on dinner. She knew that it wouldn't take long for them to arrive. 

"Tadama!" Kagome called as she pushed aside the door covering. The others entered right after her.

Glancing up from her task, Keade nodded and replied, "Welcome back, Kagome." Glancing over the young Miko's shoulder, Keade was surprised to see a tall white hared demon enter her hut; followed by a toad and a young woman. I see you have brought friends. Who might you be and why are you traveling with Inu-Yasha?"

"Feh, That's my brother, Sesshomaru, his mate Rin, and their servant Jakken." Inu-Yasha replied; as he crossed his arms and made himself comfortable on the floor.

"I see. I thought he did look a bit like you, Inu-Yasha," Keade murmured; she continued to stir the pot absently while gesturing with her free hand, "Welcome to my home, please make yourselves comfortable and help yourselves to some stew."

"Arigato," Rin replied as she slowly made her way towards the old Miko. But, just before she could help herself to some stew, she spotted Inu-Yasha reaching for the whole pot. She was not the only one who noticed, however.

Glaring at his brother, Sesshomaru silently stepped forward and before Inu-Yasha knew what hit him, the Western Lord cuffed him on the back of the head while growling a warning.

"Hey! What did you do that for!" the former hanyou growled. Sesshomaru growled louder before letting loose a quiet bark of disapproval; effectively telling his younger brother that he was being rude.

"Feh!" Inu-Yasha growled while he continued to reach for the stew pot once more.

Keade heard the commotion and glanced towards the scene. Seeing what was going on, she decided to comment, "Inu-Yasha, you will wait for your share. Ye cannot have the whole pot. If you continue, I will have Kagome subdue you."

Inu-Yasha heaved a quiet sigh and decided to quietly wait for them to finish. Hearing no further comment from Inu-Yasha, Keade turned her attention back towards the group and asked "How has thy hunt for the Jewel Shards gone?"

Nervously, Kagome glanced down towards Shippo to check how he was holding up and grimaced inwardly. She knew that it wouldn't be much longer now before he wore himself out since he had been holding it for twenty minutes. So, coming to a split second decision, Kagome told Keade everything that had happed since they left the village. After she had finished her tale, Shippo suddenly gasped out, "I can't hold it anymore," and the illusion winked out to reveal their new demon features.

Keade's one good eye widened in shocked surprise, gasping she whispered, "Oh, my."

AN: Well, I hope you enjoyed this little bit of fun! Thanksforgive me the idea for this chapter! I really ran with the idea of Inu hating taking a bath.

I want to thank all of you who've waited patiently for me to update.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 17

Keade sat stunned for a few moments after the illusion had dropped to reveal Kagome, Miroku, Inu-Yasha and Sango in their new demonic forms. Gathering her wits about her, she cleared her throat and murmured, "Sit down and explain what has transpired to turn ye into thus."

Sesshomaru sighed. He knew that this would take awhile to explain, so he sat himself against a wall and explained what had happened to them when the dragon had attacked their group. "We fell when a dragon demon released some type of poisonous gas that even my body's ability to counteract the poison failed," he said, his voice as unemotional as a rock.

"Aye. It must have been some powerful poison to put even the Lord of the West down," Keade murmured as she sipped her tea. Pausing for a moment, she gathered her thoughts before continuing, "What happened to ye when the poison struck?"

"Yeah. You never told us what the hell happened to you when you breathed that shit in, Jackass," Inu-Yasha interjected, rudely.

Sesshomaru, smirked, cocked a brow and replied dryly, "You never asked, baka."

Miroku snickered at Inu-Yasha's dumbfounded expression and murmured, "He's right you know. We never did ask what happened to him after we woke up to find ourselves like this. I think we were too busy trying to figure out what had happened."

Sango leaned forward and scooped another helping of stew into her bowl and asked, "Miroku has got a point. We were too busy afterwards trying to figure out our abilities. So, what really happened to you, Sesshomaru?"

The Western Lord turned his head to stare out the window. The room was silent as he gathered his thoughts; just before Inu-Yasha was about to explode from inpatients, Sesshomaru's voice broke the silence, "The poison began eating away at my lungs until I couldn't breath. It was like I was drowning in my own blood. It burned like nothing I've ever experienced before. When I began coughing, I was surprised to find blood upon my hand. It wasn't long after, that I passed out from the lack of air. I know that Inu-Yasha was still fighting when I lost consciousness." He turned to stare at the group and ran his claws through his tail, "I think we all died that day."

"What the fuck are you talking about," Inu-Yasha growled, curious at his brothers reaction to Keade's question. His brother had closed up again when he began to talk about it. He had shuddered almost imperceptibly but, Inu-Yasha had noticed. But, Sesshomaru thinking that they had died almost bordered on insanity in his book. No one that he knew of, was strong enough to defeat his brother.

Growling, Sesshomaru glared at his little brother, "Do you remember the dream you had before you woke up?"

"Dream?" Inu-Yasha said, scratching at his chin with one clawed finger while screwing up his face in puzzlement. It took a few moments for it to surface and when it did, the poor hanyou turned demon began cursing, "Shit! We really did die! It was like I was watching everything from outside of my body. Our father's ghost came and deflected the attack back towards Kagura and that dragon demon. It was really something to watch. He obliterated that dragon with little effort!"

Sesshomaru nodded and replied, "So you do remember. Your not as stupid as I thought you were, little brother."

"Hey!" Inu-Yasha growled, angrily while the others laughed at the banter between the brothers. If Inu-Yasha had been asked about his relationship with his brother before this had happened, he would have said that he hated the bastard. But, now he could honestly admit that he was enjoying it but, he would never say that out loud.

"What else transpired," Keade interrupted before a fight could erupt. She knew that her little hut would not be able to withstand a battle between the two demon brothers.

The Western Lord turned his attention towards the aged Miko and replied, "Father said that the Kami refused to let Naraku win. From what I could understand, the Kami allowed father to interfere and give us each a gift." I watched when father somehow made the Shikon No Tama come to him. It stopped directly in front of him and then he smiled at us before crossing the swords with the jewel floating inside the 'X' before send powerful bursts of energy through them and directly into the jewel fragment."

"Hey. I remember that, too," Inu-Yasha interrupted before continuing where his brother left off, "The jewel started spinning faster and faster and it started glowing brighter than the sun…until the whole clearing was covered in a blinding pink light. I remember watching as our bodies floated off of the ground. And as this was happening, father poured more power into the jewel." Inu-Yasha turned his head towards Sesshomaru to comment, "You weren't kidding when you said that father was very powerful. If I had tried to put out that much power, I would have passed out half way through." He turned his attention back towards Keade and continued, "Anyway, as he poured more juice into the Tama, it began beating like a living heart. Our bodies were encased in a bright light and that's about all I remember….Oh, I do vaguely remember hearing father wishing us good luck before everything became hazy and I blacked out."

"Aye. Ye have had a trying time of things," Keade murmured. "It would seem that even the Kami have plans for ye. They may even wish that ye stand up to something even greater than Naraku. And that may be why ye were resurrected and transformed into full blooded dog demons." Shifting, Keade's bones cracked from sitting in one position for such a long time. Sighing, the old Miko replied, "Well, it is late and I must be off to bed. Ye will have to tell the villagers your story in the morning. But, ye must wait until I have explained it to them first, or they will panic if they see ye as thus. Mind ye, they won't recognize ye as full demon. All they are familiar with is a hanyou and three humans. They won't be expecting to see ye either, Sesshomaru-sama." With those words said, Keade disappeared into the next room to sleep.

Seeing the wisdom behind the old Miko's actions, Sesshomaru relaxed against the wall and closed his eyes to get some rest. After all, it had been several weeks since he had slept and he was exhausted. The rest of the group silently decided to get some rest as well. They were all tired from the events that had transpired as well as the long journey. It wasn't long before all slept like the dead.

* * *

As the first breath of dawn worked its way across the sky, Miroku's eyes snapped open as some hidden instinct insisted that he awaken. Blinking the sleep from his eyes, the demon monk glanced around at his companions for a brief moment before his eyes were met with the tempting sight of Sango's backside. His hand began twitching uncontrollably. Slowly he made his way over towards her, his hand was inches from her backside when he was startled by a growling noise.

Alerted by the slight rustling noise, Sesshomaru's eyes snapped open and watched as Miroku slowly advance upon Sango. He could see that Miroku was up to his usual antics and decided to intervene. "Monk, this Sesshomaru suggests that you regain control of yourself. If you wake her like that, she will kill you," the Western Lord growled quietly, from his resting place against the far wall.

Miroku stared at Sango's rear end with longing and whined, "But, it would be worth it," he said while flexing his clawed hand in mid air.

"You know as well as this Sesshomaru that she will not tolerate your advances until you have completely made amends with her. Sesshomaru's words made Miroku pause for a few moments as he remembered the past few weeks traveling through all of the villages that they had passed through. One memory came to mind; He had been up to his usually antics of asking **the question, **when suddenly he had felt the most threatening aurora known to man and demon alike. When he had turned around; Sango stood there growling with Hirakkatsu, ready to beam him on the head for asking such a question. Shuddering at the memory, Miroku replied, "You're right," before quickly but, quietly exiting the hut at a dead run.

Once he regained control, he slowed to a walk and contemplated the future, "We've only got a few more shards left to find and that bastard Naraku still manages to allude us but, I hope we'll be able to defeat him soon." Glancing around, Miroku could see that he had traveled quite a distance due to his demon speed and his preoccupied thoughts. Stopping in the middle of a clearing, Miroku enjoyed the sudden cooling breeze as it lifted the strands of his hair and plied his senses with a myriad of different scents One scent teased his canine nose and piqued his curiosity. "Mm. I wonder what that is," he mused as he followed the scent to its origin. As he walked, he took stock of his surroundings. Nothing looked familiar to him, "Hmm, maybe I ended up near the next village….but, that's a two days journey from Inu-Yasha's forest." Pausing in mid step, Miroku leaned his back against a nearby tree and muttered, "But, it could happen…I've got these new demon powers now, so I guess I did run farther than I intended." He glanced towards the sky and watched as a few white fluffy clouds floated lazily through the heavens before heaving a sigh, "I'd better get back to the village or the others will begin to worry."

Suddenly, he heard giggling coming from nearby. Curiosity getting the better of him, he moved closer towards the noise. Sniffing the air, Miroku cursed his bad luck since the wind was not in his favor. Making sure to keep himself well hidden, he moved closer towards the source to the sound until he was separated only by the large bush in front of him. Lifting one clawed hand, he gently pushed aside some branches to get a better look. His eyes widened considerably as he finally beheld the source of those giggles. It was an extremely beautiful woman. Instinctively, he sniffed the air to get her scent. He grinned when the unmistakable scent of a human female made itself known and thought, _"Maybe I should go and introduce myself."_ Sniffing the air again, he detected several other scents and determined that she was not alone. Glancing around, he noticed several guards standing near a caravan of some sort and thought, _"Damn. I can't show myself or she'll scream and alert the guards. I guess I can ask her if she'd bear my child. Ah, who am I kidding? She wouldn't want to bear a demon's child and besides she'd scream if she saw me anyway. I'd better leave."_ But, Miroku lingered, still staring at the woman or more importantly, what she wore. From what he could see, she wore the finest silks that a noble could possess. It was the color of midnight blue so dark that it could be mistaken for the color black but, it sparkled with silver piping which made him wonder what Sango would look like if she wore it. He could just see it. It would make her eyes and hair stand out, strikingly. Miroku knew that he now had to give up his womanizing ways since he had already come to the conclusion that Sango was the only one for him. Now, if he could find a way to make her realize that she belonged to him….

So lost in his musings was he, that he failed to hear the set of footsteps coming from behind him and off to the right. His daydream was broken by the sound of a sword being drawn. Turning around, Miroku glanced over his shoulder to see a guard standing behind him, "Hmm?"

"You, bandit!" the guard growled as he spied a figure staring at his princess from the deepest of shadows. The stranger was hidden very well in this dark forest but, the guard was determined to protect his princess from what he determined to be a bandit. "Come out where I can see you!"

Miroku sighed and thought, _"Ah crap. I can't show myself. I'd better try and bluff my way out of this," _before he murmured quietly, "I'm not a bandit. I am but a humble hoshi, and I don't think coming out is a good idea. I think I will stay right here, thank you."

"If you don't come out then I'll have to come get you and you won't like the results," the guard growled while lifted his Katana threateningly and taking several steps closer. As he neared, the sun decided to illuminate the forest more strongly. It was then that Miroku's eyes, hair, and demon features became known. The guard began backing away while stuttering in abject fear. When he was far enough away he screamed, "D-DEMON!"

Miroku winced as the guard raised the alarm by shouting. His sensitive ears rang with the loud human's screaming. Lifting his clawed hands, he covered them and growled, "Damn, now I know why Sesshomaru and Inu-Yasha can't take loud noises. It's very irritating."

Miroku cringed as the guards voice grated upon his ears once again. Only this time the guard intended to bring reinforcements as he screamed, "DEMON ATTACK!" For a brief moment, Miroku forgot that he was a dog demon so, he glanced around while looking for the offending demon. Until finally, he realized that the guard was screaming about him. Miroku stood there blinking stupidly for a moment and muttered, "Demon attack!…..I haven't even done anything and that stupid human thinks I'm attacking?" Shacking his head, he began moving off in the same direction he came from. "Pffft. I must be spending too much time with Sesshomaru and Inu-Yasha to be calling them 'stupid humans'…after all, I was human once." Miroku murmured while waving one clawed hand in the air, dismissively.

He had not gone very far when he was suddenly surrounded by the very same guards from the caravan. Pausing in mid step, Miroku raised one clawed hand and grasped onto his tail, which hung over his left shoulder, much like Sesshomaru's did. His blood began to boil and he could feel an unmistakable, if irrational urge to rend and tear them to shreds. Struggling for control, he gritted his teeth and growled, "Move!"

"I'm afraid we can't do that, demon!" Yelled one of the guards as he drew his katana. "After all, you were staring at our princess and just might get it in your mind to steal her."

Miroku could not believe what his ears were telling him. These humans were really stupid and so far, they were really getting on his nerves. He couldn't believe that they were attacking him just because he was a demon. What did they really think that he would do to the girl…..rape her? He had no interest in the human woman. After all, he had only come to investigate who was giggling. It made him really angry to be stereo-typed like that. And besides, he already had a potential mate. Narrowing his eyes, he curled his upper lip, exposing a fang and growled threateningly, "Get out of my way!"

"I'm afraid we can't let you live, demon!" Yelled the leader of the guards before he turned towards his men and yelled, "Kill the demon! Attack!"

At those words, something inside of Miroku snapped. Bearing his fangs, he snarled loudly; the sound was menacing, causing a few of the guards to pause in their tracks and run away. It was that hesitation and decision to run that saved their very lives, because the once human monk, now full demon, followed his instincts to the letter and proceeded to slaughter those that threatened his very life. As the first guard tried to decapitate him, Miroku's eyes flared blood red, his left arm shot out and grasped the guard's wrists, while his right proceeded to cut the man in half with his deadly claws. The man fell to the ground, dead and in two pieces.

The second guard had snuck up behind the demon monk to try a sneak attack. It was unfortunate that he had to bear witness to his comrades untimely death in such a brutal manor. Just as he pulled his arm back to thrust his katana into the demon's heart, Miroku senses went wild, warning him of the danger. Whirling around, he swept the guards feet out from under him, while at the same time, swiping his bloodied claws across the man's face. The guard fell to the ground, screaming in pain. The noise was so loud that it stung Miroku's sensitive ears. So, to silence the noise, the demon monk cocked back a fist and clocked him on the temple. However, not knowing his strength, he hit the guard too hard and as a result, he shattered the man's skull like a ripe melon. Unfortunately, while his attention was turned, the rest of the guards who had not backed out of the fight, decided that now was a good time to attack.

They all charged as one towards Miroku's unprotected back. Whirling around and snarling, Miroku's demon blood raged out of control as the threat to his life triggered his will to survive. Crouching, he waited until they were ten feet in front of him before he sprang into action. Quickly, he ran forward towards the charging group of guards, claws at the ready. As one guard swung at him, he dodged the blow and immediately retaliated, claws tearing deeply into the flesh of his abdomen, effectively gutting the man and in the process, splattering his face and hands with his enemies blood. That last death, however, was the catalyst of the battle because as one, the remaining attackers, turned tail and ran.

It took a few moments for Miroku to calm down but, once his demon blood had receded and he could think rationally again, he glanced around to see a sight that would forever chill his blood. Today, was the first time he had killed a human. It was devastating to the once former monk. All of his life, he had been taught to save lives, not take them. _"But, they would have killed me just because I'm a demon and just because I was standing there. I think I understand how Inu-Yasha feels now." _He wanted to cry but, no matter how much he tried, he just couldn't sum up enough energy to do so, Miroku was emotionally numb from the shock of what he had just done.Suddenly, he felt something wet dripping down the side of his face and lifting his clawed hand to wipe it away, he paused at the sight of blood and other matter stuck under his claws. Grimacing, he shook his hands violently to get rid of anything that remained and muttered, "I need a bath," before quietly disappearing into the forest heading straight for the hot springs near Keade's village.

* * *

As the door flap swung shut, Kagome roused from her slumber with a slight frown. Something had disturbed her slumber but, she couldn't figure out what it was. Sitting up, she glanced around the hut, taking stock of its inhabitants. Noticing that Miroku was missing, she turned towards her companions and yelled, "Hey. Has anyone seen Miroku?"

Groaning at the sudden loud noise, Sango rolled over and sat up. Glancing around, she searched the hut for the former monk and gave a mental groan of annoyance, _"I can't believe he's left to go womanizing this early in the morning! Doesn't he realize what will happen to him when Keade still hasn't explained the circumstances yet?…Arrrrggg! When I get my hands on him I'll….."_

Eyes closed to the world around him, Sesshomaru tilted his head back so it rested against the wall and murmured, "He left not more than a few moments ago to do some thinking."

"Feh! Yea right, I bet he's thinking about the next bitch who'll bear his child," Inu-Yasha replied while yawing.

Frowning at his little brother's rude remark towards the former monk, Sesshomaru decided to play mediator on his behalf, "I wouldn't be so quick to judge him if I were you, little brother."

"Keh!" the younger dog demon growled while rising to his feet and stretching. "Shut up, bastard. I've known him longer than you….and I bet that he's out there chasing some bitch."

"Inu-Yasha, that's not very nice!" Kagome growled as she sent a warning glare in the former hanyou's direction. It was one of those looks that females instinctively knew would frighten the men, and Kagome used it like a pro. "You should apologize to your brother this instant or else!"

Cringing slightly, Inu-Yasha tried to bluster his way out of being sat, "What!" he pointed a finger towards the door flap and continued, "You know I'm right!"

"That's not the point!" Kagome bared her fangs in frustration. How could he be so dense and not notice that he was hurting Sango's feelings. She took one look in Sango's direction, taking notice of the set expression upon her face before glancing back towards Inu-Yasha to see his smug expression, before she snarled, "SIT BOY!"

CRAAAASH!

Ignoring the current argument and rolling her eyes as yet again Inu-Yasha tasted dirt, Sango began to unconsciously follow Miroku's scent trail out of the hut and into the forest. Pausing, she glanced around, trying to spot the youkai monk in the darkness. After all, it wasn't hard to miss since, his white and lavender hair stood out starkly in the darkness like a beacon. Not seeing anything that would remotely clue her in to where he had disappeared to, she glanced towards the rising sun and thought, _"Where could he have gone off too?" _

Moving further into the forest, Sango traveled for another ten minutes when the scent of a nearby hot spring tantalized her nose and gave rise to thoughts of a nice warm bath. After all, it had been awhile since she'd last had a warm bath and taking a tentative sniff of herself, Sango wrinkled her nose in disgust. There was no way around it, she literally stank! "Oh well, a bath it is and then I'll find that monk and when I do, he'll be very sorry if I catch him with another girl!" Sango growled menacingly as she continued deeper into the forest, heading straight for the nearby hot springs.

* * *

Back in Keade's hut, Rin was roused from her deep slumber by a loud crashing noise and gave a groan of annoyance, "When will he learn to not annoy Lady Kagome?"

Sesshomaru cracked open an eyelid and smirking he replied, "Give him a few more hundred years and over a million 'sit' commands from Kagome and he'll learn to be more careful of his words."

Rin giggled briefly, before turning her smiling gaze towards her mate and replied thoughtfully, "I don't know, Sesshomaru-sama. I don't think even that will help him very much."

Turning his gaze back towards the fighting couple, Sesshomaru shrugged and replied dryly, "I think you may be right, Rin."

Shippo cracked up laughing when he overheard Rin and Sesshomaru's conversation. In between bouts of laughter, he interjected his own thoughts upon the matter, "I couldn't agree with you more!…..bwaaahahahahaha. I think Inu-Y-yasha actually likes it when momma sits him!"

"Huh?" Rin paused for a moment while her young inexperienced mind tried to process this new information. However, not so for Sesshomaru, "I do believe the kit is right, my brother is a machoisist. Who would have thought…" he thought to himself before he snorted briefly and then cracked up laughing. It was the sound of his rusty laughter that roused the attention of his younger sibling and his future mate.

"What the fuck are you laughing at, Sesshomaru?" growled Inu-Yasha as he eyed his brother nervously. Just to be on the safe side, Inu-Yasha pulled himself up off of the floor, grabbed Kagome by the arm and dragged her towards the door. "I think it would be a good idea if we make ourselves scarce right now, Kagome. Maybe we should visit your mother," Inu-Yasha whispered as he watched Sesshomaru warily. After all, one never knew what would set his brother off. And a laughing Sesshomaru was a very scary thing, indeed.

"Huh?" Kagome replied stupidly, somewhat at a loss for words. She had never seen Sesshomaru start laughing like that before, and for some reason, it made her want to see him smile and laugh more often. It made his otherworldly beauty to another level. "Oh, come on Inu-Yasha. Don't be such a wimp. Just give me a minute before we go," Kagome replied while rolling her eyes at his behavior. By the time she finished speaking, Sesshomaru had regained a modicum form of control over his laughter.

Shifting her eyes a bit, she spotted Jaken frozen stiff. Taking a sniff, she concluded that the toad was stiff with fear and might have just fainted standing up. Grinning, _"This is just too hard to resist,"_ she thought as she shook herself lose from Inu-Yasha's hold and walked over towards the toad. Glancing down at him, she gently poked him on his forehead, then watched as he tilted backwards, statue stiff, to land upon his back.

Upon seeing this Sesshomaru snorted and muttered, "Stupid toad" before he replayed the scene within his mind. Snickering a bit, he couldn't help but chuckle when he glanced at Jaken's expression. Tilting his head a bit, Sesshomaru took note of Jaken's bug-eyed expression and open mouth and murmured dryly, "That's a great way to catch flies. If he keeps that up, Jaken will never go hungry again."

Of course, Rin had no such reservations as she began laughing hysterically. "Oh, oh my. That was funny! Rin has never seen Jaken-sama do that before." Rin covered her mouth with one hand while trying to contain her giggles. Rin's laughter was so infectious, that it caused everyone to start laughing. It was a while before they were able to control themselves enough to meet with the villagers. Fortunately for them, everything went off without a hitch.

* * *

Sighing, Miroku glanced around to see that he had arrived at the hot springs. Striping himself of his blood spattered clothes, he wrinkled his nose in disgust before entering the water, "Ah, that feels nice," he muttered while lowering himself until he was waist deep in the hot water. Letting his thoughts wander, Miroku tried to forget that he had just slaughtered a bunch of humans. Unfortunately, he couldn't forget because of the stench of blood that covered his body. Quickly, he submerged his head and began scrubbing at his blood encrusted hair. It was a few minutes before he judged that he had done a good enough job of divesting himself of the blood and scent of death. Bursting from the water, he flipped his hair over his head in a cascading arc, before settling himself against a boulder to relax. Slowly his mind wandered towards the problem of himself and Sango. And he began to think about what he would need to do to make Sango his mate. "I guess I'll have to stop asking everything female to bear my child and get her to trust me even if it means that I can't grope her anymore."

Glancing at his cursed hand, he slowly fisted it before growling quietly, "I will find you, Naraku. And when I do, I will finally avenge my family and take Sango as my mate. After all, who would willingly bare my offspring now that I'm a dog demon? I think Sango would make a good mate for me. Now, if only I can convince her." Sighing, he glanced towards the noon day sun and muttered, "After all, I'm no longer human and I might hurt any human female while in the middle of our mating."

Lifting an arm, he ran his claws through his hair until they became entangled in the tie. Muttering and expletive, he removed the tie by slitting it with his claw, letting the long lavender and white strands cascade down his back. With his hair down and framing his face, Miroku's visage was one of utter beauty, much like Sesshomaru, his demonic features gave him a feminine cast, yet they did not take away his masculinity. His eyes, a deep purple shade, literally sparkled as if they contained an all consuming knowledge of the world around him. He idly brushed a lock of hair away from his face as he stared at his reflection in the steamy water. Tucking it behind one pointed ear, he still could not get over the severe change in his appearance. From what he could see, he had ears much like Sesshomaru's, his markings were purple. "Hmm, I wonder if these markings are all over my body?" he murmured as he stood up in the water to check. _"I bet Sango would love to see me like this," _he thought, smirking mischievously as he noted that his demon body was more muscular than his human form. And not only that, he had gained some attributes that he personally thought would better please a woman during a bout of hot love making.

So lost in his musings was he, that was completely startled when he heard the gasp of surprise from the intruder that had just stepped into the clearing. Whirling around, eyes flaring red, Miroku snarled threateningly as he readied himself to attack but, he let lose his own gasp of surprise as he beheld the one person that he least expected to see, "S-sango?"

* * *

AN: I hope you've enjoyed this chapter. I know I've left this off at a cliff hanger and I'm not sorry that I've done that. It makes the anticipation all that much stronger.

Just so you know, I'm going to periodically write updates in my authors bio so you know what's going on.

The reason why I'm so late in getting this chapter out is because I have returned to College. I really hate my job and I've decided to continue my education to become a teacher. Between homework and finals and even essay papers, I'm a bit frazzled but, I'm determined to go back to school full time. So, my writing may be a bit more delayed. I will try to write more but, I do have a real life and I'm not a young kid who has all the time in the world to write. Anyway, let me know what you think of this chapter.


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 18

"M-Miroku!" Sango gasped as her eyes widened in shocked surprise. As her eyes lingered on his form, her cheeks suddenly felt hot, as she blushed redder than Inu-Yasha's fire-rat hori. Rising her hands, she covered them, and tried to tear her eyes away from the sight of the naked dog demon. It wasn't true that she had never seen a naked man before. After all, it was a common practice in her village for all of the warriors to bathe together after exterminating demons. But, somehow, seeing someone you cared about completely nude changed things. _ "Oh my god! I can't believe that his robes were hiding a body like that!"_ Sango thought as she ran her eyes from the top of his head, towards his chest and arms, she paused a few moments to admire his musculature. Licking her suddenly dry lips she thought, _"oh boy! I wonder what the rest of him looks like." _ Grinning, she continued, _"Oh yeah, he's naked and all I have to do is…." _and moved her gaze towards his washboard abs before continuing on towards his assets. When her eyes sought to see below the water, she silently cursed the rising steam since it made it difficult to see anything.

Miroku noticed that she couldn't seem to move her eyes away and decided to solve that problem as he suddenly cleared his throat and submerged himself into the water with an embarrassed flush upon his pale striped cheeks, "S-sango?"

"Mmmm?" Sango replied absently, while still trying to peer into the water's depths to catch a glimpse of him.

"W-why are you staring at me like that?" he squeaked, suddenly feeling like a piece of meet ready to be consumed by a hunter….and Sango was the hunter.

"Oh, I thought that I'd gotten lucky after I found out that you were missing, so I decided to take a bath. But, to my great surprise, I find you at the only hot spring within twenty miles of the village….naked as the day you were born," Raising one clawed finger to her chin in a thoughtful gesture, she raised her eyes to meet his and continued, "Now, I wonder what….I should do with you?" she teased.

Miroku was shocked that Sango would say something like that. _"Oh Budda, please give your servant strength" _he preyed silently before, another thought struck him "_…oh wait, I'm a demon now…and….ah hell, give me strength anyway even though I've been turned into a dog demon, I'm still your loyal servant and I could use all the help I can get right now," _he mentally muttered as several scenarios ran through his mind. A few of them involved the two of them mating but, most of them involved how he was going to get out of the water without further exposure in front of his future mate. After all, he still had to get on her good side in order for Sango to allow him to get close enough to her without her killing him. When he didn't receive a divine answer, he thought to himself, _"I guess there's no hope that I'll receive some sort of divine interference so, I'll have to see how far I can go before she gets embarrassed. After all, I'm not ashamed of my body. I think she's bluffing and I'm going to call that bluff," _With that thought in mind, Miroku grinned wickedly as he moved towards the edge of the spring, each step causing more of his body to be revealed to the female staring at him and purred in a suggestive manor.

"W-what are you…..?" Sango stuttered briefly in confusion, before she noticed that he was walking steadily towards her, each step exuding male confidence as more and more of his body was revealed. Sango couldn't help but gulp as she watched a bead of water run down his chest to meander over his washboard abs and towards that mysterious place that declared him, male. Only one thought ran through her mind, and it had nothing to do with turning around, _"Oh Kami, why does he have to be so beautiful?"_ Her eyes widened even more as she noticed that the water was now even with his hipbones. She gulped nervously when she felt a liquid heat start to pool down below and squeaked, "M-Miroku!"

Grinning triumphantly, Miroku purposely lowered his voice into a growling purr and replied, "Hai, Sango. What is it?" before, he took another torturous step closer, causing the water level to lower another inch to reveal a white patch of hair.

Sango's eyes widened even more as she watched him come closer. For some odd reason, she couldn't seem to tear her eyes away from his body. It was as if she craved it. With each inch of skin that was revealed to her hungry eyes, her body temperature began to rise. She could suddenly feel the tingling sensation down below grow stronger, and instinctively squeezed her thighs together. Even her breathing began to accelerate; she couldn't seem to bring in enough air to her starving lungs. "Y-your not seriously coming out of there, are you?"

"Why my dear Sango, I didn't think you cared whether or not I come out naked. If you look over your shoulder to the right you'll see that my clothes are over there on that rock," Miroku replied mischievously as he pointed towards the boulder that stood just behind the exterminator. "Besides, as you can see, I will have to get out to retrieve my clothes. It's not my fault that you walked in on me while I bathed," the demon monk continued as he eyed Sango's reaction towards his nakedness. Taking an imperceptible sniff, he suddenly detected the scent of arousal and mentally growled, _"I see that she is not so indifferent as she makes herself out to be. But, what is that strange alluring scent."_ With that thought in mind, he exited the water.

"Miroku!" Sango gasped as he walked out of the water. She quickly whirled around since, she was expecting to see him in all his glory but, since her back was turned, she didn't see that he emerged from the water with his white tail wrapped around his hips. "Have you no shame!" Sango yelled as her cheeks flared redder than the sun. Glancing out of the corner of her eye, she could still see his nakedness. Mentally she said a prayer for strength to resist his charms when her belly gave a strange lurch, "Miroku, put some clothes on!"

Miroku cocked his head to the right as he regarded his future mate and inhaled deeply and thought, _"That strange scent is driving me crazy but, what is it?" _Frowning in confusion, he took another breath, _"That's not the scent of her arousal, it's something more. I know I've smelled this before…..wait a minute, s-she smelled like this when she went into heat six months ago….Oh Kami, I've got to control….." _Suddenly, he bared his fangs while his eyes reddened as his instincts took full control. Abandoning his course towards his clothes, Miroku slowly stalked closer towards Sango and growled audibly, "Mine," before he grasped her by the shoulders, pulling her back flush against his chest and lowering his mouth to where her neck met her shoulder, he laved the sensitive area with his tongue.

"M-Miroku!" Sango squeaked, shocked at his behavior. She wanted to push him away but, as the sensation of his tongue laving her neck sent shockwaves through her system, she suddenly wanted to be closer to him so she pressed herself against him and purred. Unbeknownst to Sango, her eyes slowly began to bleed red as her demonic instincts began to surface. After a few more minutes passed, she had lost total control of her rational mind. Growling lustfully, Sango whirled around in Miroku's arms, and pulled him flush against her chest, grasped his chin in her hand before biting down on the juncture of his neck, and growling possessively, "Mine!"

That was all it took for both of them to be lost. Miroku growled triumphantly as he slammed his lips onto hers. Reaching out a clawed hand, he began searching for the ties. When he couldn't locate them, he stiffed his claws and carefully but, quickly slashed at her kimono. In his haste to reach treasures hidden from his gaze, pieces of Sango's kimono began flying in every direction as Miroku shredded it. Once he had her completely naked, he lifted her off of her feet and laid her on the ground; while at the same time, their lips never broke contact with the other.

If someone had come upon them they would have seen one big jumble of arms and legs as the two demons frantically tried to divest each other of their clothing. Accompanying the scene, of course, were their loud cries as each of them sought and found the most sensitive parts on each others bodies. As Miroku's lips found the bud of Sango's breast, he laved the area with his tongue before, he took it into his mouth, sucking and biting at it in his fevered frenzy of lust and long suppressed needs.

"Aaaaaa!" Sango's eyes rolled to the back of her head as she released a cry at the feel of him latched on to her like a babe at a mother's breast. This feeling felt so wondrous and electrifying that she could feel her toes beginning to curl and a strange throbbing began to erupt in the special place between her legs. Instinctively, she brought her right leg up to curl around Miroku's hips and with a strong pull, she brought him closer towards her throbbing center.

As Kagome and Inu-Yasha exited the hut and began their journey towards the well, the former hanyou mumbled, "Man, am I glad we're going to be away from them for a while. Sesshomaru was acting very strange, even for him…..I think he must be sick."

"Oh come on, Inu-Yasha, can't you give your brother a break?" Kagome replied while glancing over her shoulder. She broke into a fit of giggles when she beheld the former hanyou's expression. He had a combination of expressions chasing each other across his face; first, he looked puzzled before, it melted into confusion. His cute puppy ears managed to convey his feelings loud and clear as they twitched and flopped in every direction before, ending up flat against his skull. So caught up in her amusement at Inu-Yasha's expense, Kagome didn't notice as he picked her up bridle style and jumped into the well.

After they became engulfed in the time stream, Inu-Yasha snorted and muttered sarcastically, "Yea, I'll give him a break….I'll break his arm to bring him back to his senses."

"I heard that, Inu-Yasha," Kagome muttered as he jumped out of the well and made his way out of the well house, never once letting go of her. "You know that in the past month that we've come to know him, he has changed all of our opinions of his character."

Grudgingly, Inu-Yasha nodded as he set her on her feet in front of the door to the kitchen. Glancing up at him, Kagome murmured, "I'm sure he has feelings just like anyone else but, since he was raised differently from you, he just doesn't show them to others because, ……well, it might be considered a sign of weakness."

"Keh! Yeah, right and I'm a cat demon!" he grumped in disbelief; Inu-Yasha was fairly convinced, at least in his mind, that his brother was a cold hearted demon. But, silently in some small corner of his mind, he began to doubt his convictions because of what had happened in the past few weeks. However, it was Kagome's parting shot that made it really slam home in his conscious mind.

Grinning as she stepped into the kitchen, Kagome replied, "fine, then you're a cat demon because, he told me himself that as a pup, he was forbidden to show any sign of emotion because it **is** seen as a weakness." Taking a quick look around and not seeing anyone, Kagome silently prayed that no one would see her before she darted up the stairs to her room to get a few more sets of clean clothes and most importantly…a bath but, not necessarily in that order. Wrinkling her nose at her own scent, Kagome growled quietly before muttering, "I think I'll take a bath first."

Mouth hanging open at her parting shot, Inu-Yasha stood there on the porch with one raised claw and an expression of incredibility on his face before he snorted, "Damnit! Why does she always do that to me! Sneaky bitch!" Shaking his head and rolling his eyes in exasperation, he walked through the door and muttered, "Feh, now I'll have to be nicer to Sesshomaru. But, not too nice or he'll think I'm sick or something….and if he starts something with me then, I'll kick his ass again."

As he stepped into the kitchen, he breathed deeply at the heavenly smells that wafted through the air, "Mmm, Kagome's mom must be making breakfast…..Sniff …and if my nose is right, that's bacon!"

"Oh, Inu-Yasha dear, it's so nice to see you," Mrs. Higurashi murmured as she quickly took the pan off of the stove and made her way towards the former hanyou, while her hands reached for those cute triangles perched atop his head. No matter how much she tried, she couldn't resist rubbing those cute ears of his. It was like they were begging to be rubbed. _"Oh, I can't wait till Kagome and Inu-Yasha have children….especially children that will have those same ears!"_ she thought to herself, grinning.

As Mrs. Higurashi reached to fondle his ears again, Inu-Yasha laid them flat against his head. _"Kuso, I wish that my ears were like Sesshomaru's, so that no one would be able to pull them like Mrs. Higurashi is doing now_,_"_ he thought, wincing, as she pulled a little bit too hard on his right ear.

He was brought out of his musings when he heard Mrs. Higurashi's strangled exclamation of surprise, "Inu-Yasha, w-what happened to your cute puppy ears!"

"What!…what the hell are you talking about?" he replied while frowning at Kagome's mother. "They're on top of my head where they always are," he continued, while reaching for them with his own hands, only to find that they had completely disappeared. Mouth dropping open in surprise, he yelled, "What the!…..KAGOME! MY EARS HAVE DISSAPEARED!"

Frantically, he continued to feel the top of his head, but couldn't find any traces of them, or any clues to where they could have disappeared too. "Oh Kami! This is beginning to weird me out!….if they're not on top of my head then they must be…." he moved his hands to where his human ears normally were on his human night of the new moon. Sure enough, they were there but something felt really strange.

Hearing the commotion from inside the bathroom, Kagome quickly wrapped a towel around her we body and rushed down the stairs at break neck speed. Dashing into the room, she was just in time to catch the dumbfounded expression on Inu-Yasha's face and growled, "What the heck are you yelling for Inu…." before she noticed that something was missing…and that something just so happened to be the most adorable part on Inu-Yasha's body. Gathering her scattered thoughts enough to speak, she pointed a finger at the top of his head and stammered, "w-what happened to your ears!"

"That's what I've been trying to find out for the past five minutes! It seems they've moved to the side of my head but they feel strange. Can you take a look at them and tell me what's wrong?" he asked while moving his forelock aside to show her his ears.

Kagome stared at them for a good five minutes in complete shock before stuttering, "I-Inu-Yasha, they're just like your brothers ears! You've got full-blooded demon ears! How the hell did that happen!"

"I-I don't know! Just a second ago your mother was rubbing my ears….." he glared at Kagome's mother before muttering, "I hate it when someone does that…., and the next thing I remember thinking was wishing that I had ears like Sesshomaru's. Then, your mother screamed. I think that about covers it!" he replied while nodding his head and crossing his arms to illustrate his point.

Kagome blinked while her brain processed his words before she broke out into a wide toothy grin, "Do you know what this means!" she all but yelled, while rocking back and forth on the balls of her feet.

Completely bewildered, Inu-Yasha frowned and growled, "What! Spit it out already, wench!"

Kagome glared at him for a few moments before her jubilation completely overrode her anger and replied, "Now, no one will be able to call you names and you'll look like a full blooded demon." She lifted a finger to her chin and pouted, "Although, I kind of liked your puppy ears. I think they made you look cute."

Inu-Yasha rolled his eyes and growled, "Feh, only you and your mother would. Everyone else…saw me as a monster."

"Well, that's because no one else took the time to get to know you and….," Kagome replied but, was interrupted by her mother gasp of surprise.

"Kagome….what happened to you?" Mrs. Higurashi inquired while laying a hand against the wall to support herself. Blinking a few times to clear her sight, she tried to make sense of her daughter's new appearance. But, after a few moments of continuous blinking didn't make the vision disappear, she began to feel faint. Mrs. Higurashi knew for a fact that her daughter was beautiful but, she now exceeded that beauty to otherworldly. Her dark hair shimmered with light blue highlights and her lips were a rich pink in color. On her cheeks, rested two pale blue stripes and her eyes matched the color of those strange markings.

"Oh Shit I forgot about my new looks!" Kagome thought while frantically trying to get her scattered thoughts together enough that she could provide her mother with a decent explanation as to why she was now a dog demon. She knew that she had to make sure to leave out certain parts of the story about the violence she and her friends encountered on a daily basis or her mother would never let her return to the feudal era. Her mind coming up blank, Kagome stuttered, "Um, momma I can explain!"

Not one known for his tact, Inu-Yasha smirked, crossed his arms and blurted out, "Feh! She's a full blooded dog demon now."

Kagome's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates, she couldn't believe Inu-Yasha had just spilled the beans like that! Just as she opened her mouth to yell at him, her mother smiled and exclaimed, "Oh honey, that's wonderful!" Turning around, she put her hands to her mouth and called loudly, "Sota, Jiji come down here for a moment!"

Kagome was confused. She wondered why her mother was happey about what had happened to her and decided to ask, "Mom, can yuou explain to me what's going on. Why are you so happy about this…I mean, I've been turned into a demon for Kami sakes!"

Mrs. Higurashi smiled while shaking her head and replied mysteriously, "You'll see dear, you'll see."

As they were waiting for the others to arrive, Kagome and Inu-Yasha began to fidget. Both of them were curious as to what she could have meant by that comment. Finally, the waiting was over when Sota popped into the room, followed by Grandpa Higurashi. "What's all this fuss about daughter?" Grandpa Higurashi inquired as he glanced towards her only daughter with curiosity. After a few moments, he gaze moved towards his granddaughter and stopped. It lingered for more than a few moments before he began to smile. The smile was unlike anything Kagome had ever seen before and she was just about to comment upon it when Grandpa Higurashi exclaimed, "So its finally happened! This is wonderful! I thought she was going to be stuck like that forever!"

Sota grinned widely and exclaimed, "Wow Sis, your demon powers have finally showed up! I thought that your Miko powers had managed to suppress your demon powers for good!"

Now, completely and utterly confused, Kagome exclaimed, "What are you talking about! Demon powers? What do you mean by that, I was human and so are you!"

"Oh Kagome, I guess we have something we should have told you a long time ago but, we were afraid of how you would have taken the news," Grandpa Higurashi replied.

Glancing to see each of her family members expression of guilt, Kagome's belief that she was born human, began to wane, "Mom? We are humans, right?"

Smiling sadly before removing her necklace. Mrs. Higurashi apologized to her daughter, "I'm sorry Kagome", before there was a sudden shimmer around her mother and suddenly, there standing in her mother's place, was a full blooded dog demon.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 19

Sesshomaru watched impassively as his brother and Kagome left the hut to go back to her time to gather supplies, as well as inform Kagome's mother of the most recent events. Once he could no longer hear them, the Western Lord sighed, then, wrinkled his nose in disgust at the rancid smell of unwashed human bodies. It was almost enough to knock out a lesser demon from the stench of it. But, he decided that the stench of the stink week lingering on his hand was even better smelling then the humans. _"I think I'd better go for a walk. I need to think a few things over. Plus, it would do me good to get away from these ningen._" With that thought in mind, he stood up intent upon leaving the hut as quietly as possible but the sound Rin's voice halted him.

"Sesshomaru-sama…"

Turning around, Sesshomaru mentally growled, a bit annoyed at the use of his title from his intended mate. He growled low to get her to meet his gaze. When Rin's eyes met his, he stepped closer to her and brushed his claws gently against her cheek and murmured, "Rin, you do not have to use my title. You are my future mate, and as such, you may use my given name without my title."

Rin's eyes lit up like the sun when his words registered and grinning happily, she replied, "Hai Sesshomaru-sa..oops." Rin blushed at her mistake and whispered, " I mean Sesshomaru."

He nodded his head in approval and almost smiled before murmuring, "Good. I'm going for a walk, you stay here." As he turned to leave, he started in surprise as Rin's delicately clawed hand brushed against his right cheek. Her fingertips were so soft; he enjoyed the feel of her skin against his own and he unconsciously leaned into her touch while letting loose a rumbling growl of contentment. He was brought out of his stupor when he heard Rin's voice once again, "You should try to smile more often Sesshomaru. It makes you look very handsome and Kagome-sama says that it would cause any female's heart to stop, should you allow yourself too."

"Hn," he grunted in acknowledgement before slowly nodding his head. He allowed himself to admit that her words held some merit but, he knew that if he allowed himself to show any form of emotion, he would be considered weak. Taking a deep breath, he murmured quietly, "To show one's emotions is considered weak. However, I will only smile for you when we are alone, Rin."

"Hai. Rin is please that her lord will try to smile for her and her alone." Rin smiled, she felt so happy upon hearing those words from her lords lips that she felt like she was floating upon a cloud.

"Then this Sesshomaru is very pleased that he has made his Rin happy." Sesshomaru smiled one of his rare smiles that made Rin's knees feel like they were turning to jelly. His smile not only lit up his eyes but, it cracked the stone mask that he constantly wore; he was beautiful before he smiled but now, his beauty was breathtaking.

As Sesshomaru smiled at Rin, he took note of her heartbeat, he noticed that when he smiled for her, the beat of her heart increased and her scent changed and gave off a hint of arousal. _"Hmm, This Sesshomaru will make sure to smile more often now that I know what it does to my Rin." _Out loud, Sesshomaru cleared his throat to gain her attention and once Rin locked eyes with him he spoke, "Rin, This Sesshomaru has some thinking to do and I also have to take care of some business back at the castle. I will be gone for a week but, I want you to stay behind and wait for this Sesshomaru's return."

"Hai, Rin will wait." Rin replied quietly as Sesshomaru suddenly bent down and placed a brief chaste kiss upon her lips. Rin was stunned to immobility at his sudden show of affection. At this moment, Rin felt that if her lord decided to complete the bond process with her then, she would do so willingly. Myoga had explained everything to her a few weeks ago after the battle with Kagura and the dragon demon. Sure, technically her age in human years came out to twelve years but, Rin felt like she had matured faster than the normal human child her own age. She knew for a fact that she loved her lord and would do anything for him. When he had marked her as his mate, Rin was overjoyed at the prospect of spending the rest of her life with Sesshomaru. So lost in her musings was she, that she didn't notice when Sesshomaru departed the hut.

* * *

Rin paced the confines of the hut, her emotions were in turmoil. A week had already passed and gone and now it was well into the middle of the next week and her lord had yet to return! Biting her lip, Rin nibbled on it before muttering, "My lord said he would return in a week but, he's three days overdue. I wonder what's keeping him and where could he be?" Rin's pacing took her to the door of the hut before she noticed, whirling around, she started pacing in the other direction and thought, "If he does not show up by noon today, this Rin will go and look for him even though he told me to stay and wait. But, this Rin has waited long enough!" Smiling in satisfaction, Rin marched outside to await the return of her lord.

As she stepped out of the hut, Rin watched as the villagers went about their business in relative peace. She was glad that Keade had informed the villagers of their current visitors and the situation of the group of shard hunters. Now, after more than a week of seeing Rin standing by the opening of Keade's hut, the villagers turned a blind eye towards her presence. However, it was not so, when she had first appeared after Keade finished her explanation. On that day, when the villagers had first glimpsed Rin, pandemonium had broken out. The villagers had taken one look at her and reacted like they had with any other demon attacking their village, they ran screaming the word, demon, at the top of their lungs. Rin rolled her eyes at the memory and thought, "What a mess that day turned out to be." Lifting a clawed hand to shade her eyes, Rin peered off into the distance in search of her lord. Not seeing a hint of him, Rin sniffed the oncoming breeze to see if she could scent his presence. Not even a hint of his scent lingered upon the morning breeze. Sighing in disappointment, Rin glanced around and caught sight of Shippo playing in the village square with Kiara. Smiling at their antics, she called a greeting towards the two, "Ohayo Shippo-kun, Ohayo Kiara!"

Shippo & Kiara paused in their play and the little kitsune returned her greeting, "Ohayo Rin! Do you want to play with us?"

The invitation to play with the little fix kit was too tempting to resist, so Rin being a child at heart, grinned excitedly and dashed off towards the two while yelling, "Hai! Lets play hide a seek!"

Ginning with excitement, Shippo exclaimed, "That's a great idea, Rin. I'll be it the first time around while you and Kiara hide." Seeing their nods of agreement, the fire cat and Rin dashed off into the forest to hide while Shippo began counting to ten, "Ichi, ne, san, go….. " It didn't take long for Rin and the fire cat to hide themselves in the lushness of the forest, the only hint that they were there was a hint of Rin's giggles upon the morning breeze…but even that faded into the silence of Inu-Yasha's forest.

* * *

The first thing that Sango became aware of was the faint throbbing of pleasure from her lower body. Moaning, she shifted upon the ground for a moment before the scent of male musk and sex hit her like a slap in the face. Bolting upright, she franticly glanced around to get her bearings but, froze when her eyes beheld the sight of Miroku lying next to her with only his tail wrapped around his waist, and her lower body for modesty's sake. Sango blushed six different shades of red as her memories of the past week hit her like a ton of bricks! She couldn't believe what they had done. But, another part of her was glad that they had finally admitted that they loved one another. The events of the past week were almost a blur to her minds eye. One thing she did remember before she lost control of her inhibitions, was the warmth of Miroku's embrace, as he bore her down upon the forest floor, licking and sucking at her body. "Oh god! I can't believe we did that. But, oh how it felt so good to have him inside me…." Sango murmured as her lower body gave another throb of pleasure. Shivering at the sensation, Sango let loose a quiet moan when she came to the realization that she was wet between her thighs and that she wanted Miroku's touch once more.

Blushing redder at the passing thought, Sango glanced towards Miroku as he lay upon the forest floor. One arm was flung above his head, his face was turned towards her, and his lavender and white hair lay about him like a silken blanket. His beauty was breathtaking and almost seemed like a dream but, Sango knew with out a doubt, that this man…this dog demon monk, was hers and no one else would ever take him away from her or there would be dire consequences. As she sat there gazing upon his visage, Miroku began to stir.

With his eyes closed, Miroku listened to the sounds of the forest while trying to remember why he was lying on the ground without his clothes on. Twitching his tail while deep in thought, he paused when he felt the thing that his tail was wrapped around move. Instinctively, he scented the air to detect what it was that his tail was currently holding. He detected Sango's unique scent as well as the scent of sex. It was this scent that caused his eyes to open wide in surprise as his memories came back with a vengeance. Sitting up quickly, Miroku opened his eyes to a sight that would forever be engraved upon his minds eye; Sango, his glorious and lovely demon slayer, sat upon the forest floor with only his tail for modesty's sake, wrapped around her waist, and her chest bare to his hungry eyes. He could also detect her awakening arousal as well as another scent that he was unfamiliar with as she stared at his naked chest. Deciding that he would have to ask Sesshomaru what this new scent meant, he pushed his own rising lust aside, "Sango, we need to talk before we go any further." Miroku murmured as he caught her gaze and held it.

When Sango opened her mouth to comment, Miroku held up one clawed hand to forestall her reply and continued, "I have no excuse as to what just happened to us this past week. I should have had more control over myself and I'm sorry that things had to have occurred in this way. I had wanted to court you as a proper man of my station but, instead I reacted like an animal, and I'm deeply sorry. Now, I wont say that I didn't enjoy what we did but, I should have handled it differently."

As Sango sat there listening to Miroku, she was stunned at the amount of emotion he was currently displaying in his watering lavender eyes. His eyes showed her everything as he continued to hold her gaze. She wanted to shout at him that she didn't care, that she was glad that things had occurred the way they did and that it wasn't his fault alone but, he wouldn't let her speak.

"In the past, I have hidden my feelings for you because of my curse, I have kept them locked away in the deepest corner of my heart. I knew that I could not ask you to consider me as a husband. I had wanted to rid myself of this curse before I told you that I love you and asked you to become my wi-mate." Miroku glanced down as he stumbled over the words. He remembered their current condition and that demons didn't take wives and marry because in a marriage, it wasn't permanent. However, if you took a mate as Sesshomaru had explained, it was for life. Miroku was about to continue when he detected a strong scent of saltwater. Whipping his gaze towards Sango once more, he was startled to see that she was crying. At the sight of her tears, his heart gave a wrench. It hurt him to see her like this. His strong mate was crying and he knew that he would do anything to make her stop. Gently, he brushed away her tears and murmured, "Shhhh, don't cry, Sango. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. You can hit me with your boomerang until the color of my skin matches my hair and eyes…"

At these words, Sango's tears stopped as she began laughing. She now knew how Miroku felt about her and she was so very happy that she could do nothing but cry. Smiling, Sango tackled him to the ground and hugged him in a firmly, while raining kisses all over his face and murmuring in between each kiss, "I love you too….and I don't care about proper courtship. I'm a demon now and I would be extremely happy to remain as your mate." Pulling her face away to stare him directly in the eyes, Sango continued, "Besides, after what we just did, I don't think there's any turning back and for that matter, I don't care to take back what we just did. You, Houshi-sama are mine!"

Smiling with happiness, Miroku replied, "And you, Sango are mine and I'm never letting you go," before his kissed her deeply upon the lips. It was sometime later that they finally came up for air. However, that one kiss began to lead them towards another direction as Miroku's hands began to wander. Sango gave an appreciative moan as his right hand brushed against her stiffening nipple. Miroku replied with a lusty growl before he gently lowered her towards the forest floor to continue what they had been doing for the past week, only this time, they were fully aware of what the other was doing to each other's bodies.

* * *

He walked through the forest, Silent as a wraith. The only thing that made him stand out was the white of his hair and prevented him from fully blending into his surroundings, but blend in he did until he was undetectable. Shikamaru paused as he scented the air for the female that had called to him from fifty leagues away. "If I am fortunate, this female will be a white dog demon. It is very disconcerting that our females are so few and far between. One thousand years have passed since the last female was taken to mate by Inu-Taisho and even then it was a battle to claim her. That bastard took my mate and I'll be dammed if I let another female out of my grasp! I will take this female as my mate even if she is marked by another," Shikamaru growled heatedly as he glared at the far horizon.

His journey had begun when he had detected the scent of a young and unclaimed female dog demon. He had been traveling for over a week now, and he knew that today his efforts would pay off since the scent of the female was stronger then ever before. She was close, so close that he could almost taste her scent upon the air. Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Shikamaru began traveling once more. Another hour passed before he finally caught a glimpse of the female. Apparently to his eyes, it looked like she was hiding but, after a few moments of watching her, he hear a young voice call out, "Ready or not, Rin…..here I come!" He grinned triumphantly and thought, _"This will be easy as it appears that she is playing hide and seek. However, this female won't be found because she will be mine."_ Shikamaru scented the air and wrinkled his nose in disgust, he could detect another males scent lingering upon her skin but, the male was not close by. "This is just the opportunity that I have been waiting for. I'll have to be quick about it and claim this female for my own before the other male comes back, " and before that thought was completed, he had sprung into action as quick as lightning, rushing out into the clearing, he pressed a pressure point in her shoulder, effectively knocking her out. Glancing around, he chuckled wickedly before hoisting her over his shoulder, and turning in a southerly direction, he began his journey away from the Western Lands and towards his own domain.

* * *

Sesshomaru breathed deeply of the clean fresh scent flower upon the afternoon breeze as he traveled back towards Inu-Yasha's forest. He had finished his business a few days ago and unfortunately it had taken much longer than he had thought. He growled mentally in annoyance at those greedy backstabbing lords who found it necessary to simper in his presence and muttered, "If it wasn't for my hard won control, I would have killed them all on the spot but, father had deemed it necessary to keep them alive in order to manage the vastness of the Western Lands." As he breathed in the scent of the flowers, his thoughts turned towards Rin. His thoughts had always been centered upon her during most of the meetings with the other lords, if he were to admit it, he was worried about her. Sesshomaru knew from what the other lords had told him, that there had been a sighting of another white male dog demon, one that his father had fought before his mother became his mate, traveling close to the Western Land's borders.

Suddenly, the wind shifted direction bringing a million scents to his sensitive nose, he was able to detect even the slightest change from over five miles away. "Rin!" Sesshomaru growled as he smelled the male intruder and Rin's scent mingling together. Apparently, his Rin had been knocked unconscious. Sniffing the air once more, Sesshomaru became mildly alarmed when he detected a hint of lust from the male and rightfully so, since he knew that he did not completed the bond and the bite only acted as an engagement among demons. He had done it purposely because Rin was not yet of age, mentally. He had not planned on completing the bond for another ten years when Rin's mind would finally catch up with her body. Instinctively knowing the situation became a dire one, he began to run quickly back towards the forest in which his brother and pack claimed as their home territory. As he ran, he muttered, "The intruder will die for daring to touch my Rin!"


	21. The Real Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Kagome gasped in shock as she beheld her family standing no more than a few feet in front of her. Her brain felt like it had just overloaded and refused to process any more information. Due to her shock, there were a few thoughts that kept circling around in her mind, "_How can my family be demons? That's just impossible! I mean, how can I be a Miko and a demon at the same time? Wouldn't each of my abilities try to cancel the other out? There's no way that a demon can take care of a human Shinto shrine!...and another thing, Why the hell does Grampa run around with sutra's trying to exterminate every demon he see's if he is one! Arrrg!!! This just doesn't make any sense!"_ Kagome stood statue still trying to process her circling thoughts while unconsciously letting lose a soft whine of confusion.

Kagome's mother signed softly at the sound and stepped forward to reassure her daughter of her presence in a soothing, yet motherly hug and whispered, "It's alright, Kagome. There's no need to be confused or afraid, I'm here."

As she felt her mother's warm arms wrap around her, Kagome blinked a few times before uttering softly, "Mama, why didn't you tell me earlier?"

Just as Mrs. Higurashi was about to reply to her daughters question, it was her grandfather who decided to answer, "My dear granddaughter, what do you know of the history of the Higurashi clan?"

"What do you mean grandpa? I know what you've told me, but I haven't had a chance to read some of the ancient scrolls, yet."

"Hmm? Ah yes. I see that I have either neglected to tell you that our family's ancestors were full blooded dog demons with the abilities of Monks and Miko's or," Kagome's grandfather paused a bit in his speech while narrowing his eyes at his granddaughter before continuing, "…you haven't been listening while I told you the stories of our clan's history. Do you think that I haven't noticed when you tune me out and start day-dreaming?"

Kagome could feel her face heating up in embarrassment. It was true that every time her grandfather began telling her the history of the Higurashi clan, she would, and did tune him out because she had thought that what he had to say was boring. But now, she felt guilty for not listening and replied, "How was I to know that our family's ancestors were full blooded dog demons with the abilities of monks and Miko's? I thought that Grandpa's stories were just that, stories! I mean, no one these days believes in demons or Miko's since they're all considered legends."

Grandpa sighed audibly before going off in a tangent and muttering, "Hmph, young pups these days, the nerve; they refuse to listen to their elders and look where it gets them! In trouble…. I say that's where it gets them."

As Inu-Yasha listened to the conversation going on before him, he began thinking about Kagome's clan name. He was ashamed of himself for not asking her, her clan name before, but her clan name sounded so familiar to him, _"I just know that I've heard of a dog demon clan back in __Sengoku_ _Jodi that lived in the far north about a hundred years ago. Hmmm, it was rumored that they had the abilities of Monks and Miko's, but I'm sure that the clan was wiped out by some of the neighboring demon clans who were afraid of their abilities. Obviously, some survived or my Kagome wouldn't be here today." _Blinking a few times to clear his head, Inu-Yasha began to grin stupidly before he began to laugh. He couldn't contain himself, he was surprised, but yet at the same time, he was happy for the first time in his life that he began to laugh uncontrollably, "Hahahahahahahahahahahahah". He laughed so hard that the fell onto his rear, clutching his stomach as if to ward of the pain.

Kagome and her family stared at the former hanyou, wondering why he was acting like that. It looked like he had finally lost his marbles. Shaking her head, Kagome tried to find out why he had finally decided that now was a good time to go off the deep end, "Inu-Yasha?" Kagome waited a moment to see if he had heard her but, the former hanyou kept laughing. Pursing her lips in annoyance, Kagome growled, "Will you stop laughing so I can ask you a question?" No response was forthcoming from the former hanyou except the sound of laughter. Now, Kagome was getting to the point that she was about to blow, but decided to take a deep breath before trying one last time_. "If he doesn't' answer me I'm going to sit him so hard that he'll literally see hell!"_ she thought to herself before speaking aloud, "Inu-Yasha! Hey! I'm talking to you!"

It took him a few moments to calm himself down before he could form a coherent sentence, when he suddenly sat up and exclaimed, "Oh Kami, that's the best surprise I've ever had. Man….and I thought I was in so much trouble with your mom because I thought it was the Shikon no Tama that had changed Kagome into a demon!" As his laughter finally tapered off, Inu-Yasha sighed quietly before standing. Placing a hand behind his head and grinning, he began to explain, "Kagome, I'm sorry for laughing like that, but you gotta understand that I was surprised at hearing your clan name and figuring out that some of them had survived the Yoshinko Massacre that I began to laugh. You see….if some of your ancestors had not survived, then, you wouldn't be alive, and then I wouldn't have met you."

As Kagome listened to Inu-Yasha explain, it began to dawn on her that he was finally beginning to use his brain to think things out first before acting and thought to herself, _"Maybe all of those lesions with Sesshomaru are finally paying off."_ Out loud, she replied, "Oh, I hadn't thought of that."

Souta frowned while thinking about what his Inu-no-nichan had said about the Yoshinko Massacre. He was sure that his grandfather had never mentioned it to him before and was very curious about it. Therefore, being the curious pup that he was, he piped up and began to ask a lot of questions, "Inu-Yasha, what's the Yoshinko Massacre…..and where was it? Why haven't I heard about it before? How many of our clan were killed?……do you know who started it? What did…..?"

Holding up a clawed hand, Inu-Yasha growled, "Enough! I can only answer some of your questions since I don't know that much. I've only heard rumors and the Yoshinko Massacre happened when I was a pup. And with that last sentence, the questions began to fly like a million buzzing bees. Inu-Yasha did amazingly well as he described the massacre in as few words as possible, but always to the point. It wasn't long until Grandpa piped up and said, "That is something that was lost to us, I'm afraid. It might have been something that our ancestors did not want to remember. But, it is nice to have our history whole once more."

Mrs. Higurashi smiled and said, "Come, its time to eat. If we leave dinner sitting any longer it will be too cold to eat." Inu-Yasha smiled at the thought of eating a meal cooked by Kagome's mother and asked, "Oh? What did you make?"

"I've prepared some Tokoyaki(octopus puffs), Chicken flavored ramen, beef teriyaki and, Oden for din…." Mrs. Higurashi was saying before she was interrupted by a loud squeal from her daughter.

"ODEN! ODEN! ODEN! ODEN! ODEN! ODEN! ODEN! ODEN!" Kagome chanted as she dashed for the kitchen.

Inu-Yasha blinked in shock as he watched the normally placid Kagome dash like a wild demon into the kitchen and commented, "Man, and I thought she said that I was bad when it came to ramen." Inu-Yasha glanced at Mrs. Higurashi and asked, "Does she always do that?"

Mrs. Higurashi sighed and replied with a wry smile, "Why yes, she does. But, you'll have to wait a moment as Kagome is not the only one who loves oden like you love ramen."

Suddenly, Inu-Yasha saw a smaller black and blue blur pass by him yelling at the top of its lungs. "Kagome! Don't you dare eat all of the oden before I get some!" Souta wailed as he dashed off in hot pursuit after his sister.

* * *

Shikamaru paused in his travel when his passenger gave a slight moan, hinting that she was about to awaken. Growling, he tightened his grip upon her legs and began to run at a much faster pace than before and thought, "I must get out of this territory before she awakens or she might call out for help."

Sniffing the air to detect any sign of pursuit, Shikamaru almost relaxed when he could detect none. However, being a male dog demon himself and wise in the ways of his kind, he knew that he could not pause or it might just mean his life if he was ever caught. That knowledge did not deter him from his course of action however, since he was confident in his battle prowess as well in his experience against Sesshomaru's father. It was only through sheer luck and the fact that he had been distracted that Sesshomaru's father had won his future mate who after a few years became Sesshomaru's mother. The thought still infuriated the older dog demon and he was very determined to keep this female. After all, he was getting on in years and he had yet to produce an heir. Taking another sniff of the air, he almost paused again when he recognized part of the scent lingering upon the female. "So, you are claimed by one of Inu-Taisho's whelps. It seems to me that it would be a fitting revenge against the Taisho clan if I took you from the current Western lord, Sesshomaru…..just like Inu-Taisho took my mate from me all those years ago!" Shikamaru growled angrily.

Focusing his eyes towards his path once more, Shikamaru could just make out the border lands between his territory and Sesshomaru's territory. Grinning in triumph, he chuckled before running at en even faster pace than before. "Once I cross the borderlands and arrive within my territory, I will mark you as my mate and make no mistake bitch!...I will claim you in every way that a male claims their mate, be you willing or unwilling, you will be mine!"

After a few more minutes of travel, Shikamaru finally crossed the borderland between the territories. Shifting his burden from his shoulder into his arms, he lowered her to the ground behind a dense thicket before glancing at the female and smiling, he licked his lips. He could almost taste her upon his tongue. After all, she was ripe for the taking and he would have his mate. As he leaned down to put his own mark upon her neck, he moved her head to the side to make it easier to place the bite. Grinning in triumph, he began to sink his fangs directly onto the mark of the Western Lord's in an effort to completely obliterate Sesshomaru's claim from existence.

* * *

Everything passed by him in a blur of motion as Sesshomaru ran in the direction of his mate and the arrogant male who dared to try and steal his mate. "I will find you Rin and when I do….." he let that thought trail off before focusing upon the trail in front of him.

Suddenly, Sesshomaru felt a wrenching sensation deep within his chest as something within seemingly snapped. He stumbled, and gasping, he lifted a clawed hand to grasp at his heart while falling to one knee, he moaned, "Kami, what is this pain I feel?" Shaking his head he muttered, "The pain is too much to be normal. It feels like my heart is being ripped out of my chest". Little did Sesshomaru know that it was not a physical wound, but a wound of the soul.

Instinctively, Sesshomaru knew the male was trying to overwrite his mate mark with a mark of his own. Growling in fury, the normally calm Western Lord's fine won control snapped; a great rush of power filled his veins as the once human like lord suddenly lost his ability to maintain his human-like appearance and was now rampaging though the forest in his true form. Lifting his massive head towards the sky, Sesshomaru leapt towards the clouds and running on top of them, he let lose a howl of pursuit. The meaning of the howl was not lost to those of the dog demon heritage; it plainly stated that the male who had dared to try to claim the Lord of the West's mate would die!

Suddenly, Shikamaru felt an overwhelming sense of dread as he heard the distant howl of an enraged dog demon male. Glancing at the female below him, he began to curse silently, before picking her up and continuing his mad dash deeper into his territory in the hopes that the enraged demon lord would lose his scent and thought, "Once I'm deeper into the forest, I can complete my claim by fully mating you. By the time that whelp, Sesshomaru shows up, it will be too late and according to dog demon law, he cannot interfere!"

Several hours into his run, Shikamaru began to feel the ground trembling as if warning him that something large was coming. "Shit, he's reverted to his true form. It looks like I'll have to fight him after all," the male dog demon known as Shikamaru growled angrily. Narrowing his eyes, he quickly formulated a plan of attack, knowing that once a male dog demon lost his reason and became enraged, they were easy to defeat in battle. Quickly, he glanced around the forest for a place to hide Rin, spotting a cave; he quickly placed her inside and erected a barrier with his youkai, effectively hiding her from his senses. Once that task was completed, he hid himself in a thicket and masked his presence from all known senses. Then, he waited for his prey to make his appearance. "When Sesshomaru arrives, he won't know what hit him until after I've delivered the fatal blow," Shikamaru growled to himself and smirked, while his eyes glinted eerily in the darkness of the underbrush.

He didn't have long to wait before the massive form of the Lord of the West appeared. Knowing that he only had one chance to deliver a fatal wound, Shikamaru decided to wait patiently for a chance when Sesshomaru became distracted. He could see the massive form of Inu-Taisho's son and smirked evilly and thought, "Is that all there is too him….Inu-Tisho was three times his size! He must be the runt of the litter. Even I dwarf him by a head. Maybe I should transform and rip his throat out?..." Mentally, shaking his head, Shikamaru began to argue with himself, "No. That would be a fatal mistake. I can do more damage while I'm in human form. After all, it's harder to hit a small target that is moving very quickly, while a larger target is slower and easier to hit." With that thought in mind, Shikamaru readied himself for the right time to attack.

Sesshomaru could smell her, and knew that his mate was close by, but in his mind, his reasoning only existed as a distant memory. He now operated upon instinct alone. Sweeping his burning red eyes around the forest floor, the massive dog demon searched for any trace of movement within the forest. When he spotted nothing, he lifted his nose to the air and took big whiff. He growled low in his throat as he began to follow the scent deeper into another male's territory. He had been traveling since early that morning and as he stepped into another part of the forest, he could no longer detect his mate's scent! Sneezing the dust out of his nose, he decided that he could track her better if he placed his nose closer to the ground. With that thought in mind, he lowered his massive head while unknowingly, turning his back to his unknown enemy hiding close by.

This was what Shikamaru had been waiting so patiently for. Quickly he zipped out of his hiding place and charging up his attack, he aimed his lightning spear directly for Sesshomaru's unprotected heart! The attack soared towards its intended target as lightning speed, until just before it struck Sesshomaru's heart, the Western Lord miraculously sensed the incoming attack and with his demon reflexes, pushed off the ground so that the attack sailed harmlessly under him. Whipping his massive head around, Sesshomaru located his attacker in the shadows; he lifted his upper lip to display his massive canines and growled.

Shikamaru cursed mentally as his attack failed to kill Taisho's whelp in one shot. Hearing Sesshomaru's threatening growls, he smirked at his adversary and stepped forward into battle, "Well, well, looks like the whelp of Inu-No Taisho has decided to honor me with a visit." Shikamaru cocked his head to the side in a taunting manor and murmured, "I sure you are wondering who I am, are you not, whelp?"

Sesshomaru growled louder and thought, "How dare he insult me like that, ME the Lord of the West!...But, he is right, I am curious to know who it is who dared to take my Rin!" Turning his attention back towards the other male, Sesshomaru nodded his massive head and snorted.

Grinning evilly, Shikamaru bared his fangs and replied, "Ah, so you are curious. Very well then, I will tell you that I am called Shikamaru and I knew your father many, many years ago. We had a falling out, you could say." Sesshomaru watched him closely and noticed that his neutral mask began to crack as he continued to explain who he was. Wanting to know more, he asked in Inu language, "What caused this falling out?"

Growling viciously, Shikamaru roared, "He stole my mate!"

* * *

Due to an overwhelming demand for an update, I've decided to give you this chapter. Just remember that I don't have much time to write as I work and attend College. I'm also attending summer courses, so of course, it means I have less time for anything except studying. After which, I will be attending Kean University here in NJ as a full time student with 5 courses….so, nope, no time to write.

I will say this though, I WILL TRY TO WRITE MORE. I have not given up…just gotten sidetracked.


	22. Chapter 23

AN: Ok, this is the updated chapter that you have all been waiting for. I deleted the authors note that was previously chapter 21 and replaced it with this. Please review and let me know what you think.

* * *

Chapter 21.

Sesshomaru stood there for a brief moment in time as he processed his words before he blinked and thought, "This…this lowly cur stole my mate from me as a form of revenge against my father!" As that thought passed through his mind, he rolled his reddening gaze towards the other male and snarled, acid dripping from his fangs to land sizzling upon the ground. He was beyond angry at the male standing before him. He was furious that the older male thought to take revenge against him for something his father did! On top of that, this male had the gall to actually try and overlay his claiming mark on his Rin! At this point in time, it is safe to say that the male dog demon in front of him would die a very painful death if Sesshomaru had anything to say about it. After all, he wasn't known as the Killing Perfection for nothing.

Slowly, Sesshomaru grit his teeth together as he tried to calm himself enough to regain his human form. He knew that he would be no match for this male if he stayed in this form as seen with his brother, Inu-Yasha when he lost his arm due to his own overwhelming arrogance. Finally finding his icy calm demeanor, he was suddenly enveloped in a bright light before he once again stood before the older male dog demon in his human form.

Shikamaru mentally growled, _"Damn, I was hoping that the pup would not realize how vulnerable he was in his true form. If he had stayed like that I could have killed him swiftly. Now, I'll have to work harder."_ Outwardly he murmured, "So, whelp you have decided to shed your true form to battle me….a wise decision, but ultimately a foolish one." Shikamaru shifted his stance to that of an experienced fighter, a fighter who knew no boundaries and one who had no compunction about killing. Suddenly, before Sesshomaru could withdraw Tokajin and ready himself for battle, the older male disappeared from his sight. Quickly, he heightened his senses in order to locate the male and readied his sword. Eyes widening just a fraction of an inch, he sensed him….."_Above me!"_ Within a fraction of a hairsbreadth, Sesshomaru leapt back, just barely managing to avoid being impaled from above. Whirling, he brought forth his katana and sent off a pulse of power and whispered, "Dragon Strike!"

Spotting the attack as it raced towards him Shikamaru growled, "Kuso!" before lifting his own katana and quickly deflected the strike with a burst of his own power. However, he cringed as some of Sesshomaru's attack managed to slip by and injure his shoulder. He eyed it and quickly dismissed it. "A flesh wound then," he muttered while jumping over another strike sent at him by the Western Lord. It was of no consequence as it only hindered him mildly. Gathering his power, Shikamaru concentrated it into his katana and lunged; gambling everything in his conceited belief that he was superior to Sesshomaru. Unfortunately for him, he did not count on the fact that the Western Lord was younger, faster and driven by instinct to reclaim his mate from a marauding male and was quickly knocked unconscious by a blow to the temple from a well placed axe-kick.

Grinning in triumph, Sesshomaru's eyes flickered red briefly before he was overcome by an overwhelming urge to howl out his victory. Grimly, he fought against it and won. Glancing towards the male that lay prone upon the ground, he growled viciously before cracking his knuckles. Immediately his claws extended to razor sharp knives and growled, "Bastard, die!" and in one quick strike it was all over for the old male.

Quickly he rushed over to Rin and lifting her into his lap, Sesshomaru stroked her cheek lovingly while murmuring her name, "Rin? Rin it is time to awaken." When after several minutes in which Rin did not respond, Sesshomaru began to worry. It was only after another minute ticked by when her breathing began to become labored that Sesshomaru really lost it. Quickly, he turned her head to expose her neck and stared at the mark that literally screamed at him. "NOOOOO!" he screamed as realization struck him. He had killed his Rin. The male had..had left his mark and claimed her as his life mate and now that he was dead there was nothing he could do to save her, she would follow her mate into death. Damn that bastard! Sesshomaru wanted to revive the bastard so that he could kill him over and over again in the most painful ways possible. Cradling Rin close to his chest he screamed out his anguish towards the heavens, "RINNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!"

* * *

As Inu-Yasha and Kagome emerged from the well, they heard a scream that sounded like it was coming from a long distance away. "What the hell was that?" Inu-Yasha growled. 

Kagome tilted her head in puzzlement before recognition dawned upon her, "Oh my god! It's Sesshomaru!"

"What!" Inu-Yasha growled. He was confused as to why his brother would scream like that and in a way, he could not believe it.

Kagome grabbed onto his sleeve and began pulling him towards the direction of the scream and muttered urgently, "Quickly, we've got to hurry!"

"Huh?...what…Kagome!..w-wait! What's going on?" he sputtered as he was dragged a few hundred feet before he heard her yell. "Something must have happened to Rin!"

With those words echoing in his ears, he ran as fast as he could towards the direction his intended mate was running. After a few moments, he sensed the presence of several others who seemed to be heading in the same direction that he was. It took him several moments until he recognized his friends, Sango and Miroku as the culprits and muttered, "Well, looks like the rest off the pack is wondering what's going on too. Only one way to find out….I just hope it's not as bad as I think it will be or all hell will break lose!" With those words said, Inu-Yasha focused upon the path ahead and ran as fast as his legs and demon speed would allow, hoping against all odds that his hunch was wrong.

* * *

Rin stirred groggily as she heard a voice from a distance calling her name. Instinctively she knew who it was that called her and she longed to respond, but for some odd reason, she could not. No matter how much she struggled to open her eyes, they refused to obey her command. _"Sesshomaru?"_ she thought vaguely before mentally flinching at the throbbing sensation in her neck as well as the sudden stabbing pain in her chest. Moaning, she cringed at the vast amount of pain it caused her wondered why her chest hurt so much. She could feel herself slowly being pulled towards something that felt warm and she could see a bright light off towards her right. A glowing figure stood outlined against the brightness. He looked vaguely familiar to her, yet not. She could see that he was smiling at her. Lifting her arm Rin asked quietly, "What is that?...what is going on. Why …why am I seeing this..how did this happen?" 

The figure stepped forward and embraced her warmly, before stroking her cheek in a loving manner, "Child, you need not fear. Everything will be fine."

"I", Rin started to reply when suddenly, she felt a great wrenching sensation in her chest and wanted to curl into herself. She could vaguely hear screaming off into the distance and it seemed that it was getting fainter and fainter. It was almost as if she was slowly loosing herself. Suddenly, comprehension began to dawn upon her, "I'm…I'm dieing aren't I?"

"Yes. But death is not the end for you. You have already died once, have you not?" the white hared figure asked as he stoked her cheek.

Rin was confused at his question and wanted to know what was going on so she opened her mouth, "Why am I dieing?" Tilting her head to the side she stared at him and asked, "W-Who are you?"

The figure laughed lightly and smiled, "Ah yes. I forgot to tell you who I was, how inconsiderate of me." Leaning forward so that their spectral noses touched, the male muttered, "I am Inu-No-Taisho, Sesshomaru and Inu-Yasha's father. And you my dear are dieing from the death of that bastard Shikamaru since he completed the mating claim upon you and has died in battle. This is what usually happens to demons that mate for life."

"But why, why did he do this to me?" Rin asked, her voice shaking with suppressed sorrow.

Sighing, Inu-Taisho muttered quietly, "Revenge. He did it as a form of revenge against me and my family since I was the one who took his intended mate. Yet, it was not my intention to do so as it was an arranged contract between Lord Mutsumiku and myself. The union solidified the fragments of territories into one. They are now known as the Western Lands."

Rin blinked as tears began to fall down her cheek to land upon his wrist, "I don't understand. I've already died twice and I thought that I could not be revived again, so tell me how…HOW WILL EVERYTHING BE ALRIGHT!"

Inu-Taisho laughed loudly and pushed her away to arms length and said with a chuckle, "My son will cross the pits of hell to get you back, Rin! Do not doubt him since he has already done so before and will continue to do so since you are his soul mate!"

"W-what?" Rin blinked stupidly at those words and tried to make some sense out of it, but she was immediately distracted as she felt herself being tugged towards the light by Sesshomaru's father. "W-Wait! Where are we going?" Rin yelled as she tugged futilely against his grip.

Inu-Taisho turned his head to stare over his shoulder as he walked towards the light and said with a grin, "Why we are going to have a family chat in a more comfortable place while we wait for my sons to come and get you my dear daughter in law. After all, Sesshomaru's mother has been dieing to welcome you into the family." With those words, the dog lord began laughing at his own joke.

It seemed that yet once again she had died and now she would have to wait again to be saved. "WHAT!" Rin yelled, stunned at the weird turn of events. With that one word left hanging in the air, both spirits disappeared in a flash of light.

* * *

In the world of mortals and demons, Sesshomaru crouched over Rin and pleaded with her to awaken, but his plea's fell upon deaf ears. He shook her lightly before trying again and again, his calls becoming all the more frantic. He was oblivious to the grief written plainly upon his visage and if it had been him several years prior to meeting Rin, he would have been disgusted, yet he really didn't care at this moment because it was Rin! 

He feared that this time if Rin died, that Tensiaga would refuse to revive her. His mother had warned him about it and he had been very careful to watch Rin and protect her from danger, but now…now, he couldn't believe this was happening. In the background he could hear his brother and the rest of the pack arriving but he didn't care. Nothing mattered except his Rin.

Inu-Yasha skidded to a halt and leaned over his brothers' shoulder and shook him, "Sesshomaru what's the matter with Rin, what's going on?"

Kagome and Sango rushed to his side as well and managed to get a good look at her before glancing at each other. They didn't have a clue as to why Sesshomaru was acting this way and why Rin seemed to be hurt and yet fine at the same time. "What is the matter with Rin?"

Miroku hopped off of Kiara's back and stared at the scene before him. Lowering his head, he relied, "It would seem that Rin was abducted and claimed by that bastard over there," Miroku pointed towards the remains of a male dog demon. "I have heard that if one of a mated pair dies the other follows quickly." Glancing towards Sesshomaru, Miroku stroked his tail while deeply immersed in thought, vaguely aware of Rin's slowing heartbeat.

Suddenly, her chest stopped rising and falling and then her heart stopped beating. He froze, suddenly struck by a great and looming fear. Frantically he shook her; her body flopped crazily as if cut from invisible strings. All breath and sense left him and his eyes turned red as the realization struck him. Rin, his Rin, his soul mate was dead! "NOOOOO!" he screamed as realization struck him and he howled his grief towards the darkening sky. As he screamed, he could feel himself becoming lost. It didn't matter to him whether or not he kept control of his beast, after all, his mate was dead and he…he wanted to die as well. But, before he could put that thought into action, he felt a swift hard blow to his skull, which effectively knocked him unconscious. As everything went black, he heard several voices from distance, "Inu-Yasha! Why did you do that?"

"Shut up! I refused to let this bastard kill himself! He's the only one that can get her back, but he's gone off the deep end right now and needs to come back to himself before that time."

"Oh, Inu-Yasha…." With those last words echoing in his ears, Sesshomaru blacked out completely, his last waking thought was of Rin. _"He's right, I am the only one that can get you back, my Rin and I will cross the deepest pits of hell to do so!"_

* * *

A/N: Well I hope you enjoyed this chapter as I have so little time to write. College is not easy especially when you have five classes, but on the bright side I did managed to belt out this chapter. A warning though, Next semester I'm taking 6 classes! And, I'm even planning on taking summer classes before I take my praxis exam to be a teacher. So be patient with me. 


	23. Real chapter 22

Chapter 22

Chapter 22

As they walked through the darkness, Rin bit her lip nervously while making sure she had a firm grip upon Inu-Taisho's gi. She was very; very worried that Sesshomaru's mother would take an instant dislike to her and do something terrible to make her afterlife a living hell….or was it dieing? No matter, she would do everything in her power to make sure Sesshomaru's mother saw her in a positive light. But one thing puzzled her and that was what it his mother's name. Glancing upward, Rin tugged gently upon Inu-Taisho's gi and asked, "Um, excuse me sir, but what is Sesshomaru's mothers name? Y-you never told me and I can not keep calling her Sesshomaru's mother! I would also feel uncomfortable calling her mother as well since she does not know me and has never met me. But I……."

Rin's nervous chatter was cut off by the deep booming laugh for the dog lord, "Enough child. My mate is called Satsuki and I am very sure that she would not mind very much if you did call her mother. She did not have much of a chance to be one when Sesshomaru was younger. Our time was taken up by frequent battles defending our territory. Also, you can call me Tou-san or Taisho if you are uncomfortable in doing so."

Upon hearing his explanation, Rin felt a great weight lift off her corporal shoulders. Instantly, she released a sigh of relief and smiled, "Thank you Taisho, I'm sorry I'm not comfortable in calling you father right now, since I have just met you, but I believe that in time, I will adjust and consent to do so." As she finished her reply, Rin glanced over his shoulder and caught sight of a huge palace in the distance. Blinking to clear her vision, for she thought it might be a mirage, after a few moments Rin realized that it was not a mirage but an actual castle sitting in the depths of hell. As she observed its towering majesty, she wondered how it was that a castle made of white marble could have gotten there. Instantly, she glanced over towards her father in law and mumbled, "Wow. Um..how is it that a castle of that color is sitting in the depths of hell if you don't mind me asking?"

Inu-Taisho grinned before he replied, "Well, that's Satsuki's doing. She's the queen of hell and doesn't like the color black very much….says it's depressing. " He waived his hand in a nonchalant manner and continued, "Anyway, she thought that a bright color would be more cheerful and so far it has paid off. She smiles more and isn't so depressed as she used to be…but let me tell you. It was hell getting that kind of stone down here!" he waggled his eyebrows at his own pun and smiled broadly while chuckling at his own joke.

Rin giggled and realized immediately that Inu-Taisho was nothing like his sons, for one thing, he seem to be more of a practical joker than someone who was serious like Sesshomaru. He liked to smile more and laughed at his own jokes. Rin grinned and thought, _"I like him. He's funny and is nothing like Sesshomaru. He reminds me of Shippo!"_

Her thoughts were broken by Inu-Taisho's exclamation of, "Here we are! If you would just follow me, we'll be meeting with Satsuki in a moment."

Suddenly, Rin's nervousness returned ten fold, gulping, she watched as Inu-Taisho pushed open two huge double doors and saw that it led to a throne room of some kind. Glancing towards the end of the room, Rin noticed a female figure sitting upon the throne and gulped. She suddenly wanted to back out and run, but she knew that it would be very rude of her to do so, so she slowly followed Inu-Taisho towards the throne and once there she bowed deeply towards Satsuki who greeted her warmly, "Greetings, Rin's name is Rin."

Satsuki smiled and greeted her warmly, "Welcome child. Please rise and have a seat beside me. Would you like some tea?" Satsuki didn't wait for a response before clapping her hands twice. Immediately, a servant appeared at her side and murmured, "you called lady?"

Smiling at the toad-like creature, Satsuki murmured, "Tea and some snacks please."

The servant bowed and replied, "Yes lady," Before he quickly disappeared.

Watching this happen in mere moments awed Rin and remembering her manners, she obeyed Satsuki's request by sitting by her feet and replied, "This Rin is pleased to meet my lords mother and it is a great honor to be welcomed by you.. I….."

Smiling joyfully, Satsuki waived a hand nonchalantly and replied in a calm tone, "Nonsense child. Now what is this I hear about you and my son becoming mates?"

Rin gulped and explained everything that had happened in the past few months. Once she was finished, Satsuki grinned knowingly and suddenly replied, "I can see that my son has chosen well in you….even though you were originally human. No matter. You are a dog demon now that, is what matters." Leaning back in her throne, Satsuki asked slyly, "How would you like to hear some stories of my son when he was younger and maybe I can give you a few pointers in order to give you some leverage when you want to get your way?"

Blinking, Rin puzzled over what Satsuki meant by that before suddenly it hit her like a ton of bricks, "You mean blackmail!!" she gasped, shocked but very intrigued.

Inu-Taisho suddenly laughed uproariously, while clapping Rin on the back and through his laughter he said, "Now that's my mate! Tell her about that time he found out that a wasp's nest wasn't a foot ball!"

Ignoring her hysterical husband's laughter, Satsuki replied, "Yep. Now where do I begin…suddenly, she leaned over and smacked her mate on the head and growled, Oh do shut up you old goat! I'm trying to tell her how it happened!" Satisfied that her mate had stopped laughing, Satsuki began her tale, "Now, this happened when Sesshy was just a pup of seven years and he had no knowledge of the world outside. He did not know that not all round things were not balls to play with. So, my mate took him out one day to teach him about the world and Sesshy found a wasps nest and started to play with it and well," Satsuki shrugged her shoulders and giggled, "You can imagine what happened after that!"

Rin began laughing as she mentally imagined the scene in her mind. After she had calmed down enough, Satsuki began telling her more stories and they talked well into the night, minus the time they sat down to eat and have tea, but all in all, Rin found that she enjoyed being with Sesshomaru's parents. But, she couldn't help but wonder what Sesshomaru and Inu-Yasha were up to.

* * *

As Sesshomaru slowly regained consciousness, he could feel every ache and pain throughout his entire body and suddenly wished that he was unconscious again. To put it simply, it hurt like hell! But, he would not voice his pain aloud. He would be mature about it and stay quiet. "I must not yelp every time I move. I must be strong and…." Suddenly he remembered why he was in pain and that it was his brother who knocked him out. Then he began wondering, "Why can't I see…why is it so dark? He suddenly realized that his eyes were closed and releasing a quiet moan, he sniffed the air imperceptibly to get his bearings. He relaxed a little when he realized that he was with his brother and that the rest of the pack surrounded him like a safety net. After all, to his mind, being protected by a pack was something that was done and never questioned by any dog demon, even those of the white clan. Slowly he opened his eyes and flinched as the fire's light struck his sensitive pupils. Licking his lips to moisten the dry desert that was his mouth, he suddenly growled out angrily, "INU-YAHA! He listened carefully and was rewarded by the sudden quiet yelp and the scent of nervousness filled the air. Mentally grinning, Sesshomaru turned his attention to the origin of the scent and growled viciously; yet a hint of grief laced his voice, "Why did you do it?"

Gulping, Inu-Yasha stammered, "I..I couldn't let you go on a rampage. You can get Rin back when you use the Tensaiga. Besides, you weren't in your right mind at the moment and the only way I could think of stopping you was by knocking you out!" The once hanyou, folded his arms across his chest stubbornly and pouted. But, Sesshomaru could see a hint of worry in his eyes and a hint of fear as well. He wondered if his little brother feared loosing the only family he had left and it suddenly made him feel warm inside. However, he would not let his brother see the real him, yet. Sesshomaru knew that it would take time for them to become close and maybe when he felt comfortable enough to expose himself, he would, but, not yet. So with that thought in mind, Sesshomaru swallowed his pride and replied grudgingly, "Thank you, little brother, for bringing me back from my temporary madness. I will use father's sword to get Rin back even if it means I have to go to hell itself." Sesshomaru glanced towards the glistening stars and signed, "Although, if I go, you're coming with me."

"Hugh? Why the heck are you saying I have to go??" Inu-Yasha growled, puzzled by his brother's strange behavior.

Sesshomaru grimaced and replied, "Because, mother is the current ruler of Hell and you'll be the perfect shield! That's why! You don't know the horrors I've gone through with her around! If you think you're mate is bad when she see's something cute, mother is a hundred times worse! Besides, I don't relish the thought of listening to Ookasan's stories about my childhood."

"You're kidding right?" Inu-Yasha asked as he crouched down and scratched behind his ear with his foot; an old habit from when he was a hanyou.

Seeing his odd behavior, Sesshomaru quickly bopped him on the head and growled, "Knock it off! You're not a hanyou anymore and that is just disgusting!"

Miroku grinned at the byplay between the brothers and couldn't contain himself anymore, he laughed briefly before interjecting, "He is right, Inu-Yasha. Doing that makes you look like a common dog."

"Yeah!" Shippo piped in crossing his arms in a knowing manner.

"Yes. You have to remember that you are from a noble family and act accordingly," Sango replied while she turned the spit over the fire to make sure the other side of the boar was cooked properly.

"Huh, what the heck are you talking about?" Inu cocked his hear curiously and grumbled, "You mean it's ok to do that when we're in our true forms but, not when I'm like this?"

Sesshomaru grumbled to himself before replying, "If mother see's you doing that you better run and hide because she'll make sure that she beats some manners into you." Glancing back towards the group, Sesshomaru growled, "Enough of this conversation, as soon as I heal enough to travel, we are going to retrieve Rin, agreed?"

Everyone noticed his serious expression and decided that digression was the better part of valor, besides they could clearly see how much Sesshomaru missed Rin, even if he didn't say it out loud. So with that thought in mind, they all busied themselves with the business of dinner and then getting some sleep. After all, they were going to have a few busy days ahead.


End file.
